Chest Circumference and Health. A Study on Italian Military Call-up Records (19th-20th C.)

Alessio Fornasin , University of Udine
Marco Breschi, Università degli Studi di Sassari
Matteo Manfredini, University of Parma

The aim of the paper is the analysis of the health status of the conscripts of Friuli (Northeastern Italy) between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, observing, in particular, the close link between health and nutrition. There are territorial variations in the spread of certain diseases due to food shortages, such as goiter (determined by the lack of iodine), and the chest circumference of the young people, which represents a synthesis of the level of nourishment of individuals. Through a regression model we consider some variables that influence the measure of the conscript's chest circumference, in particular height, age, date of medical examination, place of residence, occupation, price of maize and temperature in the months prior to the medical examination.

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 Presented in Session P2. Poster Session Ageing, Health and Mortality