A study recently published in the Journal of Economics and Human Biology co-authored by professor of public affairs at the University of Wisconsin Jason Fletcher examines the connection between exposure to alcohol while in the womb and old-age mortality.
In the study, Fletcher and research affiliate in UW’s Center for Demography of Health and Aging Hamid Noghanibehambari focus on alcohol exposure in-utero, or in the womb, specifically targeting the period of the federal alcohol ban in the U.S. Fletcher and Noghanibehambari’s paper is the first to study the long-term effects of in-utero prohibition and lifespan.
Using data from the Social Security Administration death records linked to the 1940 census, Fletcher and Noghanibehambari tracked the lifespan of male individuals born in the U.S. during Prohibition, according to the paper.
“We’re looking at a historical time where it wasn’t even known that excessive alcohol during pregnancy was a problem for a fetus,” Fletcher said.
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From the death records, Fletcher and Noghanibehambari found the male individuals lived between 1.7 and 11.8 years longer than those not born during Prohibition, according to the paper. Further statistical testing was done to prove no outside socioeconomic changes drove these effects.
Fletcher said though this study highlights a period from the early 1900s, there is still relevance to students today, emphasizing the idea that young people need to investigate how policy impacts society on a long-term basis.
“You really want to consider not just what the policy effects are in the immediate aftermath of a policy, but much longer term,” Fletcher said.
The study will be added to the large library of research investigating how the choices made while pregnant affect the long-term health of the fetus.
