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Title: The height gap in 19th-century America: Net-nutritional advantage of the elite increased at the onset of modern economic growth

Citation Type: Journal Article

Publication Year: 2013

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Abstract: We present evidence on the 19th-century trend in the height of male US passport applicants. These men represent a much wealthier segment of contemporary society than found in most stature samples previously analyzed. The height trend among the wealthy is much more robust in comparison to the average population that experienced a decline in stature. The resulting increase in the height gapby roughly 1 in. between cohorts born around 1820 and 1860is in congruence with evidence on rising wealth inequality and the notion of dietary change in antebellum America.

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Authors: Sunder, Marco

Periodical (Full): Economics & Human Biology

Issue: 3

Volume: 11

Pages: 245-258

Data Collections: IPUMS USA

Topics: Other

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