Cold winter, desperate heart: Experience of Great Famine and drinks

Famine is a significant and far-reaching challenge for developing countries. This study focuses on the impact of the Great Famine in China around 1960 (1959-1961) on citizens' long-term drinking behavior, health, and socio-economic consequences. We use the CFPS panel data from 2012 to 2020 as a benchmark for regression, employing multiple regression methods including double fixed effects, Poisson fixed effects, and logistic regression fixed effects to find a significant relationship between experiencing famine and the risk of alcohol consumption. However, cohort heterogeneity analysis reveals that this effect is driven entirely by individuals who were already adults during the famine (born before 1941), while those exposed in utero or during infancy (born 1959-1961) show no significant long-term increase in drinking risk. The connection between experiencing the Great Famine as an adult and the risk of alcohol consumption may stem from the deep psychological trauma it causes, similar to how war victims use alcohol abuse to escape pain. By introducing the CHARLS database to explore eight health consequences, we found that frequent alcohol consumption is significantly associated with adverse health outcomes. By combining the CFPS questionnaire to evaluate economic and social consequences, we found that frequent alcohol consumption can negatively affect citizens' trust in various aspects and reduce their sense of happiness. Additionally, it was found that education has a corrective effect and can alleviate the despair caused by experiencing famine, providing a possible solution to mitigate the negative psychological impact of famine.