We investigate how nutritional status responded to economic growth in Italy during 1861-1911. By combining household-level data on food consumption with population censuses, we estimate that the incidence of undernutrition decreased by at least 15 percent between 1881 and 1901. Income elasticity of calories in 1901 was in the range of 0.3-0.6, varying inversely with the level income. Overall, our findings do not support the pessimists’ view, ubiquitous in the Italian literature. On the contrary, the early phase of Italian industrialization was beneficial to the bulk of the population, and even more so for the poorest among the poor.
Vecchi, G., Coppola, M. (2006). Nutrition and growth in Italy, 1861-1911: what macroeconomic data hide. EXPLORATIONS IN ECONOMIC HISTORY, 43(3), 438-464 [10.1016/j.eeh.2005.04.004].
Nutrition and growth in Italy, 1861-1911: what macroeconomic data hide
VECCHI, GIOVANNI;
2006-01-01
Abstract
We investigate how nutritional status responded to economic growth in Italy during 1861-1911. By combining household-level data on food consumption with population censuses, we estimate that the incidence of undernutrition decreased by at least 15 percent between 1881 and 1901. Income elasticity of calories in 1901 was in the range of 0.3-0.6, varying inversely with the level income. Overall, our findings do not support the pessimists’ view, ubiquitous in the Italian literature. On the contrary, the early phase of Italian industrialization was beneficial to the bulk of the population, and even more so for the poorest among the poor.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
