For example, 47% of male high school dropouts in the researchers' sample are current smokers, while smoking among male high school completers is about 26 percentage points lower. Additionally, those who completed high school and were once smokers are more likely to have quit.
However, the researchers found little evidence that high school completion had an influence on weight. In fact, male high school completers were actually about 7 percentage points more likely to be overweight, though individuals whose parents completed more schooling tend to be lighter.
'This association is particularly strong for women...when the mother has had higher schooling,' write the authors. 'This pattern suggests that improperly excluding parental schooling may result in overestimates of the true causal effect of the child's schooling on health behaviors.'
(Source:Eurekalert)