Obese men eat up their IQ points

Vaccination News Home Page                                            subscribe Vaccination NewsLetter

 

http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/03/02/1046540068050.html

 

 

Obese men eat up their IQ points

 

March 3 2003

By Robert Matthews

London

 

Being overweight is not only bad for men's hearts - it also makes them less intelligent. A study of the intelligence of the obese has found that being seriously overweight reduces intelligence in males, possibly through its effect on blood circulation in the brain.

 

The finding comes as obesity rates grow in Australia - almost 40 per cent of the population is overweight and more than 20 per cent obese, according to a Federal Government report.

 

Links between obesity and conditions such as high blood pressure, known to increase the risk of poor blood circulation and diseases such as strokes, have long been recognised.

 

Now researchers in America have shown that obesity by itself is able to cause a significant decline in mental ability. The finding has emerged from the renowned Framingham Heart Study, begun in 1950 and involving thousands of people from Framingham in Massachusetts who have health and mental checks every two years.

 

By studying the records of more than 1400 men and women, Professor Merrill Elias and colleagues at the University of Boston found that men classified as clinically obese appear to have significantly reduced mental agility. Curiously, fat women did not suffer the same fate.

 

When given cognitive function tests involving logic, verbal fluency and recall, obese men achieved scores as much as 23 per cent below those of non-obese men, even after taking into account factors such as educational level, occupation and blood pressure.

 

Vaccination News Home Page

ALL INFORMATION, DATA, AND MATERIAL CONTAINED, PRESENTED, OR PROVIDED HERE IS FOR GENERAL INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS REFLECTING THE KNOWLEDGE OR OPINIONS OF THE PUBLISHER, AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED OR INTENDED AS PROVIDING MEDICAL OR LEGAL ADVICE.  THE DECISION WHETHER OR NOT TO VACCINATE IS AN IMPORTANT AND COMPLEX ISSUE AND SHOULD BE MADE BY YOU, AND YOU ALONE, IN CONSULTATION WITH YOUR HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.