The study tracked 65,765 people born in Scotland in 1936 for 79 years.
People with higher IQs live longer lives, research finds.
People with high intelligence in childhood are less likely to get heart disease, strokes, respiratory diseases and dementia later on.
Some of the lowered risk is down to the fact that more intelligent people are less likely to smoke.
The conclusions come from a study of 65,765 people born in Scotland in 1936 who were followed until age 79.
Higher IQ scores in childhood were linked to a:
- 28% reduction in risk of death from respiratory diseases,
- 25% reduction in risk of death from coronary heart disease,
- and 24% reduction in stroke risk.
The study’s authors write:
“Importantly, it shows that childhood IQ is strongly associated with causes of death that are, to a great extent, dependent on already known risk factors…
…tobacco smoking and its distribution along the socioeconomic spectrum could be of particular importance here.
[…]It remains to be seen if this is the full story or if IQ signals something deeper, and possibly genetic, in its relation to longevity.”
The study was published in the BMJ (Calvin et al., 2017).
