Scarring through the 1923 German hyperinflation

Abstract

I study the link between the 1923 German hyperinflation and health by linking monthly data on the cost-of-living index with monthly infant and cause-specific adult mortality rates in 280 cities. By exploring panel data with a range of fixed effects, I find that hyperinflation boosted mortality rates. The largest increases in mortality came from deaths plausibly linked to deteriorating social conditions over the short term, such as losses from influenza, meningitis, scarlet fever, tuberculosis, and whooping cough. I also rely on children’s heights and weights to show that worsening health was related to impaired nutrition. The results are robust to a range of specifications, placebo tests, and Conley standard errors.