The Impact of Body Mass Index on Growth, Schooling, Productivity, and Savings: A Cross-Country Study

We examine the relationship between wealth and health through prominent growth indicators cognitive ability. Cognitive ability is represented by nutritional status. The proxy variable for status BMI. use reduced form equation in cubic specification of time preference rate, strongly related to ability, estimate this relationship. utilized are GDP per capita, schooling, overall manufacturing productivities, savings. our models using FE, GMM estimators, long difference OLS IV estimation balanced panel data 1980-2009 period. conclude that all BMI inverse U-shaped. In other words, has a significant potential progress economic development only healthy