The choices people make throughout life may be shaped by a factor that emerges surprisingly early.
People with higher IQs are likely to live longer, according to research.
Those with high intelligence in childhood are less likely to get heart disease, strokes, respiratory diseases and dementia later on.
Higher intelligence may allow people to learn better health behaviours and cope more effectively with problems over the years.
Some of the lowered risk is down to the fact that more intelligent people are less likely to smoke.
The conclusions come from a Scottish study that included 938 people who were followed for over 25 years.
The results showed that each 15-point increase in IQ was associated with a 17 percent reduction in the risk of death.
This study found that the link between IQ and longevity was strongest among children brought up in poorer neighbourhoods.
The findings suggest that higher intelligence may be especially beneficial for the longevity of people from poorer backgrounds, said Dr Carole L. Hart, the study’s first author:
“The significant interaction found between IQ and deprivation suggests that IQ in childhood is less important in terms of mortality for people who live in more affluent areas in adulthood than for people who live in deprived areas.”
It is not yet clear how IQ is related to longevity, said Dr Hart:
“It is possible that low childhood IQ leads to adult deprivation, which in turn leads to earlier death.”
Some studies have suggested that IQ and longevity are linked to the same sets of genes.
Another possibility is that adverse circumstances associated with poverty can reduce cognitive development and lower IQ.
Poor nutrition, limited educational opportunities and disadvantaged neighbourhoods may all hinder mental development.
Other studies have also suggested that higher IQ leads to a longer life.
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The study was published in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine (Hart et al., 2003).
