Intelligent children live longer 

Experts say smarter children grow up to take better care of 

themselves and live longer (file)

Those with a higher IQ make smarter

health choices and are more likely to

exercise and not smoke

• Smarter children less likely to die from heart disease, 
• stroke or certain cancers
• Also have lower chance of dying from injuries, 
• digestive diseases and dementia
• More intelligent people are better at looking after 
• themselves, theory goes 
• Genetics may also play a role but we can learn to copy 
• smart people, say experts

Intelligent children are likely to survive longer, research 

suggests.

A British study which has tracked 65,000 people since 

their birth to the age of 79, found childhood IQ is strongly

 linked to longevity.

Children who had a high IQ at the age of 11 were far less 

likely to have died from heart disease, stroke or certain cancers, 

the researchers found.

They also had a lower risk of dying from injuries, digestive 

diseases and dementia, the scientists found.

Experts at the University of Edinburgh suspect this is because 

people who are more intelligent are better at looking after 

themselves – they are less likely to smoke and more likely to

 follow healthier lifestyles.

But there is a chance that genetics may also play a role, 

a theory that suggests people whose DNA gives them high

 intelligence also likely to be healthier in other ways.

Experts say smarter children grow up to take better care of 

themselves and live longer (file)

How the research was carried out 

The researchers, whose work is published in the British 

Medical Journal, examined data for 33,536 men and 32,229 

women born in Scotland in 1936.

Their intelligence was tested at age 11 and they were followed 

for 68 years until December 2015.

After taking account of several factors that could have 

influenced the results – such as age, sex and socio-economic

 status – the researchers found people who had displayed 

higher childhood intelligence were more likely to still be alive.

A higher test score was associated with a 28 per cent reduced

 risk of death from respiratory disease, a 25 per cent reduced

 risk of death from coronary heart disease, and a 24 per 

cent lower risk of death from stroke.

The researchers said several theories have been put forward

 as explanations, such as people with higher IQs being more

 likely to look after their health and being less likely to smoke.

They also tend to do more exercise and seek medical attention 

when ill.

Other evidence suggests genetics may play a role in the link

 between cognitive ability and longevity.

We should copy smart people 

Professor Ian Deary of the University of Edinburgh, who

 led the research, said: ‘I’m being optimistic about these results.

‘I’m hoping it means that if we can find out what smart people

 do and copy them, then we have a chance of a slightly longer

 and healthier life.

‘We don’t fully know yet why intelligence from childhood and longevity

 are related, and we are keeping an open mind.

‘Lifestyles – eg not smoking – education, health literacy, 

less deprivation, and genetics might all play a part. We and other

 research teams are testing these ideas.’

Experts from the Karolinska Intitute in Sweden, writing in a linked

 editorial also published in the BMJ, said IQ seems to be most 

strongly linked to smoking.

‘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,’ they wrote.

‘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.’