Public Health
Volume 120, Issue 11 , Pages 1020-1026, November 2006

Childhood IQ and deaths up to middle age: The Newcastle Thousand Families Study

  • M.S. Pearce

      Affiliations

    • Paediatric and Lifecourse Epidemiology Research Group, School of Clinical Medical Sciences, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4LP, UK
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author. Tel.: +441912023082; fax: +441912023060.
    • ,
  • I.J. Deary

      Affiliations

    • Department of Psychology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
    • ,
  • A.H. Young

      Affiliations

    • School of Neurology, Neurobiology and Psychiatry, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
    • ,
  • L. Parker

      Affiliations

    • Paediatric and Lifecourse Epidemiology Research Group, School of Clinical Medical Sciences, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4LP, UK

Received 10 June 2005; received in revised form 8 May 2006; accepted 28 June 2006.

Summary 

Objectives

To test the hypothesis that an association exists between childhood IQ (at age 11) and mortality up to middle age.

Study design

The Newcastle Thousand Families study, a prospectively followed cohort, originally consisted of all 1142 births in the city of Newcastle in May and June 1947. Using data on 717 members of this cohort, we investigated the associations between the results of tests of IQ and English and arithmetic ability at age 11 years and mortality up to the end of 2003 using Cox's proportional hazards models.

Results

Childhood IQ was significantly related to mortality in men (hazard ratio 0.57 for a standard deviation change in IQ at age 11; 95% CI 0.37, 0.86; P=0.007), but not in women (hazard ratio 0.79; 95% CI 0.49, 1.27; P=0.33). Adjustment for social class at birth had little effect on the associations. Similar results were seen when using the English and arithmetic scores.

Conclusions

These results confirm a recently reported association between individual differences in childhood cognition and mortality up to middle age, independent of childhood socio-economic circumstances. It is possible that the link between IQ and mortality is in part mediated through later life choices. Further research is required to identify the mechanisms by which such an association may occur, and to provide input to health promotion and disease management strategies that may improve health throughout life.

Keywords: Cognition, Child, Mortality, Cohort, IQ

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PII: S0033-3506(06)00204-6

doi:10.1016/j.puhe.2006.06.015

Public Health
Volume 120, Issue 11 , Pages 1020-1026, November 2006

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