Department of Economics, Seoul National University, 1 Gwanak-ro, Gwanak-gu, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea.
Econ Hum Biol. 2024 Aug;54:101382. doi: 10.1016/j.ehb.2024.101382. Epub 2024 Apr 12.
We investigate a historical experience to measure the long-term effect of malaria on lifespan among infected survivors and identify a factor that mitigates malaria's effect. Using a sample of Union Army veterans born during the mid-19th century and their lifetime records, we show that exposure to high risk of malaria at birth or in early life substantially shortened their lifespan. The legacy of exposure to malaria is robust while controlling for lifetime socioeconomic and health conditions, fixed effects, and considering selection bias. Additionally, we include the US Colored Troops sample of black veterans to analyze racial differences in the effect of malaria exposure on lifespan. Exposure to malaria did not lead to a shorter lifespan among black veterans. Evidence suggests that genetic immunity to malaria in black veterans might contribute this heterogeneity.
我们研究了一段历史经验，以衡量疟疾对感染者幸存者寿命的长期影响，并确定减轻疟疾影响的因素。利用 19 世纪中叶出生的美国联邦军队退伍军人及其终身记录样本，我们发现出生或早期生活中接触高疟疾风险会大大缩短他们的寿命。在控制终生社会经济和健康状况、固定效应并考虑选择偏差的情况下，疟疾暴露的遗留影响仍然很显著。此外，我们还包括美国有色人种部队的黑人退伍军人样本，以分析疟疾暴露对寿命的影响在黑人群体中的种族差异。疟疾暴露并没有导致黑人退伍军人的寿命缩短。有证据表明，黑人退伍军人对疟疾的遗传免疫力可能导致了这种异质性。
