The Effect of Health and Poverty on Early Childhood Cognitive Development (Report‪)‬

Introduction The literature on U.S. children consistently finds that income, wealth, and parental education are positively associated with cognitive development (Guo and Harris 2000; Waldfogel et al. 2002; Aughinbaugh and Gittleman 2003; Ruhm 2004; Taylor et al. 2004; Paxson and Schady 2007; Todd and Wolpin 2007). However, much less attention has been devoted to studying the link between child health and cognitive development. Healthcare workers have long been aware that particular health conditions, such as anemia and lead poisoning, are detrimental to cognitive development, but the literature lacks studies on the effects of more commonly acquired illnesses, especially those that do not directly affect brain function. (1)