NEW STUDY - Intelligent people are genetically predisposed to be healthier, live longer!

Some people really do win the genetic lottery.

For the first time, scientists have shown that intelligence is linked to good health, so those blessed with brains are also less likely to become sick, develop disease or die early.

The reason is down to genes. An international team, led by the University of Edinburgh, have discovered that the same gene variants which make people smart, also protect them against illness.

The only conditions that intelligence appeared to increase were schizophrenia, autism and bipolar disorder.

“The study supports an existing theory which says that those with better overall health are likely to have higher levels of intelligence,” said Dr Saskia Hagenaars, of Edinburgh University.

Dr Stuart Ritchie, also of Edinburgh added: “This study tests whether genes that are linked to mental abilities and educational attainment are also genes that are related to some disorders.

“We found that there are many overlaps: to take one example, genes related to being taller are also related to obtaining a college or university degree.

“We also asked whether the sets of genes associated with many disorders and traits predicted people’s actual levels of cognitive abilities. We found many overlaps there, too. To take one example, people with more genes linked to cardiovascular disease tended to have lower reasoning ability.”

[Source]