Explaining Long-Term Trends in Health and Longevity is a collection of essays by Nobel laureate Robert W. Fogel on the theory and measurement of ageing and health-related variables. Dr Fogel analyzes historic data on height, health, nutrition and life expectation to provide a clearer understanding of the past, illustrate the costs and benefits of using such measures and note the difficulties of drawing conclusions from data intended for different purposes. Dr Fogel explains how the basic findings of the anthropometric approach to historical analysis have helped reinterpret the nature of economic growth. Rising life expectancies and lower disease rates in countries experiencing economic growth highlight the importance of improving nutrition and agricultural productivity.
- General enough study to appeal to a non-specialist audience
- Up-to-date analysis incorporating current policy discussions regarding health care costs and ageing
- Provides an overview of anthropomorphic research conducted in the past 25 years
Read more
Reviews & endorsements
'Initially met with skepticism, anthropometric history has, over the past decades, become established as an important tool in studies of long-term changes in health and well-being, largely due to the work of Robert Fogel. This comprehensive collection of essays, written over a period of 25 years, gives new students an excellent overview of his contribution to the field, which has inspired many of us. Each essay shows Fogel's eminent ability to develop a synthesis based on a diversity of data, sometimes rich, sometimes meager. The story of how first food, then environment, and now lifestyles determine the length of our lives is compelling, if not without challenge.' Tommy Bengtsson, Lund University
'This book shows why Robert Fogel has been, for 50 years, a leader among economic historians. Theoretical insights from economics are combined with close attention to the collection and interpretation of historical evidence; the results are expressed in a lucid exposition of complex arguments, which have led to major revisions in our understanding of the past.' Professor Sir Roderick Floud, Gresham College
'This book collects some of Robert Fogel's most important essays on the analysis of long-term trends in health and nutrition. It demonstrates how the detailed analysis of historical data can generate new insights into contemporary social problems. It offers a characteristically optimistic account of the causes and consequences of improvements in human health since the start of the eighteenth century and the challenges that now confront us.' Bernard Harris, University of Southampton
'For those already familiar with Fogel's work, this volume conveniently packages some of his essays in one volume and ends with an interview with Fogel.' Dora L. Costa, Journal of Economic Literature
See more reviews
Customer reviews

Not yet reviewed
Be the first to review

Log in to review

Review was not posted due to profanity
×

, create a review

(If you're not , sign out)

Please enter the right captcha value

Please enter a star rating.

Your review must be a minimum of 12 words.

How do you rate this item?

Reviews must contain at least 12 words about the product.

×

Product details
- Date Published: October 2012
- format: Paperback
- isbn: 9781107665811
- length: 187 pages
- dimensions: 229 x 153 x 12 mm
- weight: 0.28kg
- contains: 12 b/w illus. 19 tables
- availability: Available
Table of Contents
1. Foreword Stanley Engerman
2. Secular changes in American and British stature and nutrition
3. Second thoughts on the European escape from hunger: famines, chronic malnutrition, and mortality rates
4. Trends in physiological capital: implications for equity in health care
5. Changes in disparities and chronic diseases through the course of the twentieth century
6. Some common problems in analysis and measurement
7. Afterword: a conversation with the author.
Look Inside
Author
Robert W. Fogel, University of Chicago
Robert W. Fogel is Charles R. Walgreen Distinguished Service Professor of American Institutions at the Booth School of Business, University of Chicago and Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. Dr Fogel was the joint winner (with Douglass North) of the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences in 1993. He is the author of several books, including The Escape from Hunger and Premature Death, 1700–2100: Europe, America, and the Third World (Cambridge University Press, 2004) and The Fourth Great Awakening and the Future of Egalitarianism (2002). He co-authored The Changing Body: Health, Nutrition, and Human Development in the Western World since 1700 (Cambridge University Press, 2011).
Contributors
Stanley Engerman

This title is available for institutional purchase via Cambridge Core

Related Books

The Changing Body

Health, Nutrition, and Human Development in the Western World since 1700

Explaining Long-Term Economic Change

Our Long Walk to Economic Freedom

Lessons from 100,000 Years of Human History

related journals

Browse by related subject

Save 20% off on your next online purchase with Cambridge Alerts

Receive email alerts on new books, offers and news...

Find content that relates to you

Join us online

This site uses cookies to improve your experience. Read more Close

Products and services

About us

Careers

Unlocking potential with the best learning and research solutions

Explaining Long-Term Trends in Health and Longevity

£19.99