Parental Income and Child Health in Germany

We use newly available data from Germany to study the relationship betweenparental income and child health. We find a strong gradient between parental incomeand subjective child health as has been documented earlier in the US, Canadaand the UK. The relationship in Germany is about as strong in the US and strongerthan in the UK. However, in contrast to US results, we do not find that the disadvantagesassociated with low parental income accumulate as the child ages, nor thatchildren from low socioeconomic background are more likely to suffer from 'objectivelymeasured' health problems - except for obesity. There is some evidence, however, thathigh income children are better able to cope with the adverse consequences of chronicconditions. Finally, we do not find that child health (except for low birth weight) playsa major role in the explanation of educational attainment once parental income andeducation are controlled for.Keywords: Parental Income, Child Health, Educational Attainment     «

We use newly available data from Germany to study the relationship betweenparental income and child health. We find a strong gradient between parental incomeand subjective child health as has been documented earlier in the US, Canadaand the UK. The relationship in Germany is about as strong in the US and strongerthan in the UK. However, in contrast to US results, we do not find that the disadvantagesassociated with low parental income accumulate as the child ages, nor thatchildren from low socio...     »