COHD

The Economic and Social Value of Health: Case Study Childhood Obesity

The COHD project involves a consortium of research and civil society partners to conduct a three-year study. The aim of the project is to establish the causal pathways that link childhood obesity to human capital development and social outcomes, with a focus on educational attainment, labour market outcomes and social participation.

The project is funded by the Health Foundation and is coordinated by Imperial College London, and in partnership with the University of Bristol and the World Obesity Federation. The project runs from January 2018 to December 2021. 

The COHD project is funded through the Social and Economic Value of Health programme, an innovative research programme to investigate the impact of health on society and the economy. 

Objectives

• The project aims to establish the causal pathways that link childhood obesity to human capital development and social outcomes. The project will examine the short- and long-term consequences of childhood obesity, in particular, what the causal effect is on educational attainment, employment participation, income level and social participation. 
• The project focuses on educational attainment, labour market outcomes and indicators of social participation in three UK cohorts.
• The study will use data from multiple birth cohort studies to analyse causal pathways. 
• The findings of the project will strengthen the case for action to tackle the current childhood obesity epidemic by providing an estimate of the broader welfare effects of interventions. 
• The project aims to generate more detailed knowledge of the pathways and mechanisms through which the social and economic impacts of childhood obesity are generated, which will give policymakers the means to intervene more effectively in mitigating those impacts. 

Follow this project on Twitter:

• @imperialchepi - Center for Health Economics & Policy Innovation
• @imperialBiz - Imperial College Business School 

For more information about this project, please contact Franco Sassi, Professor of International Health Policy and Economics, Centre for Health Economics and Policy Innovation, Imperial College London.