A semiparametric analysis of calorie response to income change across income groups and gender

Abstract

This paper estimates the relationship between calorie intake and income within a semiparametric framework, which allows for heterogeneity across individuals and possible nonlinearity in the relationship. The results, using a panel data set from rural south India, indicate that the income elasticity of calorie intake is small but is nonzero and statistically significant, and that the elasticity is higher for the relatively poor households in the sample. The semiparametric analysis also brings out some interesting patterns of calorie response to income change at different income levels for males and females.