Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/252199 
Year of Publication: 
2022
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 15075
Publisher: 
Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
For decades, the debate on using DDT to control malaria has focused on the balance between immediate public health gains and ecological costs, ignoring DDT's long-term harmful effects on humans. Using data from the large-scale indoor residual spraying of DDT that took place in Taiwan in the 1950s, we estimate the long-term effects of DDT exposure in early childhood on education and employment in adulthood. Our identification hinges on the unexpected extension of DDT spraying even after malaria had already been largely brought under control. Our finding shows that DDT exposure in early childhood is associated with less education and worse employment in adulthood. However, the dose-response curves are non-linear.
Subjects: 
DDT
endocrine-disrupting chemicals
malaria
human capital
Taiwan
JEL: 
I1
Q5
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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