Adult children's education and changes to parents' physical health in Mexico

- The spillover effects of offspring education on parental health are understudied.
- Parents of college-educated offspring outlive those with no such resources.
- Yet offspring education is not tied to changes in parents' physical functioning.
- Mothers' longevity is more sensitive to children's education than fathers.
- The study has implications for the familial benefits of education in Mexico.

The well-being of older adults is frequently tied to support from their adult children. Here, we assess whether the education of adult offspring is associated with changes to older parents' short- and long-term health in Mexico, a rapidly aging context with historically limited institutional support for the elderly. Educational expansion over the past half century, however, provides older adults with greater resources to rely on via the education of their children. Using longitudinal data from the Mexican Health and Aging Study (2001-2012), we find that offspring education is not associated with short-term changes in parents' physical functioning, but is associated with increased parental longevity, net of children's financial status and transfers. In addition, we find that mothers' longevity is more sensitive to offspring education than fathers. Our findings add to a growing body of literature that urges policy-makers to consider the multi-generational advantages of expanding educational opportunities in Mexico.