War's Physical Toll Can Last for Generations, as It Has for the Children of the Vietnam War

Jul 16, 2019 | Michael Palmer
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History often focuses on the immediate death toll of war. But hostilities can have longer-term consequences on a population’s health. In a new study published on June 5, it is investigated how U.S. Air Force bombing in Vietnam during 1965 to 1975 affected disability rates in Vietnam in 2009. Using a combination of national census and U.S. military data, a causal link is found between wartime bombing and disability rates 40 years after the Vietnam War. The work, completed with Nguyen Viet Cuong at National Economics University in Vietnam and Daniel Mont at University College London, shows that wars inflict harms on the health of human populations that last for generations.