The impacts of air pollution on low birth weight

Abstract

This study examines the impacts of air pollution on low birth weight by considering overtime variation in Korea in early 2000, when some parts of Korea experienced huge drop in air pollution due to regulation. The mother's exposure to ozone level above 0.12 ppm per hour during the first trimester increased the probability of low birth weight by 0.4 percentage point (0.08% of the sample mean). Exposure to carbon monoxide or sulphur dioxide (SO₂) during the third trimester also led to a significant but modest increase in the probability of low birth weight.

Keywords:

• air pollution
• low birth weight
• maternal health

JEL Classification:

• I12
• K32

Acknowledgements

We are grateful for helpful suggestions from Jinyoung Kim and Sangsoo Park. This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea Grant, funded by the Korean Government (NRF-2010-411-B00028), and the Korea University Grant.

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