Abstract: Early life is a window of opportunity for growth and development, and health conditions in the early years provide the building blocks for future development. Previous studies have shown that breastfeeding is one of the most effective ways to ensure child health and survival. Based on the theories of Early Childhood Development and Human Capital, Cumulative Health Advantage, and Education Production Function, this study looks into the impact of breastfeeding on children's long term educational performance. We also explore the mechanism using the second, third, and fourth wave China Educational Panel Survey (CEPS) data. Propensity Score Matching method is used to control the possible endogenous problems of the model. We find that breastfeeding has a significant positive effect on children's long term educational performance. Different durations of breastfeeding have different effects on educational performance. Health status at an early age and cognitive ability are the mediating factors that breastfeeding affects the educational performance.

Keywords: Early Childhood Health Investments, Breastfeeding, Educational Performance

摘要： 生命早期是成长发育的机会窗口期，早期健康奠定了个体未来发展的基础。已有研究表明母乳喂养是为婴儿提供健康成长和发育所需营养的最理想方式。据此，从儿童早期发展与人力资本理论、累积健康优势理论以及教育生产函数理论出发，使用中国教育追踪调查多期数据，探索以母乳喂养为代表的儿童早期营养投入对儿童长期教育表现的影响及其作用机制，并运用倾向得分匹配法控制模型可能存在的内生性问题。研究发现，以母乳喂养为代表的儿童早期营养投入对长期教育表现具有显著的正向作用；母乳喂养时长不同，其对儿童后期教育表现的影响程度不同；同时，研究认为母乳喂养可能通过两条路径影响初中生的教育表现，分别是个体幼年期的健康状况以及儿童的认知能力基础。

关键词: 儿童早期健康投入, 母乳喂养, 教育表现