Early-Life Intelligence Predicts Midlife Biological Age.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

Early-life intelligence has been shown to predict multiple causes of death in populations around the world. This finding suggests that intelligence might influence mortality through its effects on a general process of physiological deterioration (i.e., individual variation in "biological age"). We examined whether intelligence could predict measures of aging at midlife before the onset of most age-related disease.

Methods

We tested whether intelligence assessed in early childhood, middle childhood, and midlife predicted midlife biological age in members of the Dunedin Study, a population-representative birth cohort.

Results

Lower intelligence predicted more advanced biological age at midlife as captured by perceived facial age, a 10-biomarker algorithm base

SUBMITTER: Schaefer JD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5067943 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature