Or is it the other way around - kids with higher IQ scores move towards
vegetarian dietary habits. Perhaps both.

Also how can one be eating fish and chicken and yet be considered a
vegetarian? Vegetarians generally do not eat anything that bleeds
(blood).


------------

Kids With High IQs Grow Up to Be Vegetarians
December 15, 2006 08:40:46 PM PST
By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter

Yahoo! Health: Children's Health News

FRIDAY, Dec. 15 (HealthDay News) -- As a child's IQ rises, his taste
for meat in adulthood declines, a new study suggests.

British researchers have found that children's IQ predicts their
likelihood of becoming vegetarians as young adults -- lowering their
risk for cardiovascular disease in the process. The finding could
explain the link between smarts and better health, the investigators
say.

"Brighter people tend to have healthier dietary habits," concluded lead
author Catharine Gale, a senior research fellow at the MRC Epidemiology
Resource Centre of the University of Southampton and Southampton
General Hospital.

Recent studies suggest that vegetarianism may be associated with lower
cholesterol, reduced risk of obesity and heart disease. This might
explain why children with high IQs tend to have a lower risk of heart
disease in later life.

The report is published in the Dec. 15 online edition of the British
Medical Journal.

"We know from other studies that brighter children tend to behave in a
healthier fashion as adults -- they're less likely to smoke, less
likely to be overweight, less likely to have high blood pressure and
more likely to take strenuous exercise," Gale said. "This study
provides further evidence that people with a higher IQ tend to have a
healthier lifestyle."

In the study, Gale's team collected data on nearly 8,200 men and women
aged 30, whose IQ had been tested when they were 10 years of age.

"Children who scored higher on IQ tests at age 10 were more likely than
those who got lower scores to report that they were vegetarian at the
age of 30," Gale said.

The researchers found that 4.5 percent of participants were
vegetarians. Of these, 2.5 percent were vegan, and 33.6 percent said
they were vegetarian but also ate fish or chicken.

There was no difference in IQ score between strict vegetarians and
those who said they were vegetarian but who said they ate fish or
chicken, the researchers add.

Vegetarians were more likely to be female, of higher social class and
better educated, but IQ was still a significant predictor of being
vegetarian after adjustment for these factors, Gale said.

"Vegetarian diets are associated with lower cardiovascular disease risk
in a number of studies, so these findings suggest that a such a diet
may help to explain why children or adolescents with a higher IQ have a
lower risk of coronary heart disease as adults," Gale said.

One expert said the findings aren't the whole answer, however.

"This study left many unanswered questions such as: Did the vegetarian
children grow up in a household with a vegetarian parent? Were meatless
meals regularly served in the household? Were the children eating a
primarily vegetarian diet at the age of 10?" said Lona Sandon, an
assistant professor of clinical nutrition at the University of Texas
Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas.

"In addition, we don't know the beliefs or attitudes of the parents of
the children, nor do we know if there was a particular event that led
these children to becoming vegetarian in their teens or adulthood,"
Sandon said.

As the study showed, more women than men chose a vegetarian diet,
Sandon noted. "Other research shows that women in general will focus
more on their health than men. So, if they believe that a vegetarian
diet will have health benefits, they are more likely to follow it," she
said.

Given these factors, "we cannot draw any solid conclusions from this
research," Sandon added.

Another expert agreed that a vegetarian diet is healthy.

"The evidence linking vegetarianism to good health outcomes is very
strong," said Dr. David L. Katz, the director of the Prevention
Research Center and an associate professor of public health at the Yale
University School of Medicine.

"Studies, for example, of vegetarian Seventh-Day Adventists in
California suggest that they have lower rates of almost all major
chronic diseases, and greater longevity, than their omnivorous
counterparts," Katz said. "Evidence is also strong and consistent that
greater intelligence, higher education, and loftier social status --
which tend to cluster with one another -- also correlate with good
health."

More information

There's more on vegetarian diets at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

fruitella wrote:
: Or is it the other way around - kids with higher IQ scores move
: towards vegetarian dietary habits. Perhaps both.
:
: Also how can one be eating fish and chicken and yet be considered a
: vegetarian? Vegetarians generally do not eat anything that bleeds
: (blood).
:
:
: ------------
:
: Kids With High IQs Grow Up to Be Vegetarians
: December 15, 2006 08:40:46 PM PST
: By Steven Reinberg
: HealthDay Reporter
:
: Yahoo! Health: Children's Health News
:
: FRIDAY, Dec. 15 (HealthDay News) -- As a child's IQ rises, his taste
: for meat in adulthood declines, a new study suggests.
:
: British researchers have found that children's IQ predicts their
: likelihood of becoming vegetarians as young adults -- lowering their
: risk for cardiovascular disease in the process. The finding could
: explain the link between smarts and better health, the investigators
: say.
:
: "Brighter people tend to have healthier dietary habits," concluded
: lead author Catharine Gale, a senior research fellow at the MRC
: Epidemiology Resource Centre of the University of Southampton and
: Southampton General Hospital.
:
: Recent studies suggest that vegetarianism may be associated with lower
: cholesterol, reduced risk of obesity and heart disease. This might
: explain why children with high IQs tend to have a lower risk of heart
: disease in later life.
:
: The report is published in the Dec. 15 online edition of the British
: Medical Journal.
:
: "We know from other studies that brighter children tend to behave in a
: healthier fashion as adults -- they're less likely to smoke, less
: likely to be overweight, less likely to have high blood pressure and
: more likely to take strenuous exercise," Gale said. "This study
: provides further evidence that people with a higher IQ tend to have a
: healthier lifestyle."
:
: In the study, Gale's team collected data on nearly 8,200 men and women
: aged 30, whose IQ had been tested when they were 10 years of age.
:
: "Children who scored higher on IQ tests at age 10 were more likely
: than those who got lower scores to report that they were vegetarian
: at the age of 30," Gale said.
:
: The researchers found that 4.5 percent of participants were
: vegetarians. Of these, 2.5 percent were vegan, and 33.6 percent said
: they were vegetarian but also ate fish or chicken.
:
: There was no difference in IQ score between strict vegetarians and
: those who said they were vegetarian but who said they ate fish or
: chicken, the researchers add.
:
: Vegetarians were more likely to be female, of higher social class and
: better educated, but IQ was still a significant predictor of being
: vegetarian after adjustment for these factors, Gale said.
:
: "Vegetarian diets are associated with lower cardiovascular disease
: risk in a number of studies, so these findings suggest that a such a
: diet may help to explain why children or adolescents with a higher IQ
: have a lower risk of coronary heart disease as adults," Gale said.
:
: One expert said the findings aren't the whole answer, however.
:
: "This study left many unanswered questions such as: Did the vegetarian
: children grow up in a household with a vegetarian parent? Were
: meatless meals regularly served in the household? Were the children
: eating a primarily vegetarian diet at the age of 10?" said Lona
: Sandon, an assistant professor of clinical nutrition at the
: University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas.
:
: "In addition, we don't know the beliefs or attitudes of the parents of
: the children, nor do we know if there was a particular event that led
: these children to becoming vegetarian in their teens or adulthood,"
: Sandon said.
:
: As the study showed, more women than men chose a vegetarian diet,
: Sandon noted. "Other research shows that women in general will focus
: more on their health than men. So, if they believe that a vegetarian
: diet will have health benefits, they are more likely to follow it,"
: she said.
:
: Given these factors, "we cannot draw any solid conclusions from this
: research," Sandon added.
:
: Another expert agreed that a vegetarian diet is healthy.
:
: "The evidence linking vegetarianism to good health outcomes is very
: strong," said Dr. David L. Katz, the director of the Prevention
: Research Center and an associate professor of public health at the
: Yale University School of Medicine.
:
: "Studies, for example, of vegetarian Seventh-Day Adventists in
: California suggest that they have lower rates of almost all major
: chronic diseases, and greater longevity, than their omnivorous
: counterparts," Katz said. "Evidence is also strong and consistent that
: greater intelligence, higher education, and loftier social status --
: which tend to cluster with one another -- also correlate with good
: health."

This reminds me of a saying: "Any man who is not a communist at the age of
twenty is a fool. Any man who is still a communist at the age of fifty is an
even bigger fool." ;-)

--
Juhana

* fruitella wrote:
> Or is it the other way around - kids with higher IQ scores move towards
> vegetarian dietary habits. Perhaps both.

Very unlikely.

> Also how can one be eating fish and chicken and yet be considered a
> vegetarian?

Surveys involve self-reporting, not exactly an objective measurement. And this
one consisted of volunteers. Perhaps the differences in IQ can be chalked up
to brighter meat-eaters having more important things to do than fill out survey
forms. The fact that there was no detected difference between vegetarians and
those who called themselves vegetarians but still ate meat shows that if there's
anything to the purported findings it's that not all meat is bad.

> Vegetarians generally do not eat anything that bleeds
> (blood).

It's based on self-reporting surveys, not on observation of what people actually
eat or how smart they actually are.

Interestingly, you used an article that left something very apropos out of the
mix but was mentioned in another article about the same study. Consider:

Vegetarians are more intelligent, says study | News | This is London
http://tinyurl.com/y6hj8h

Frequently dismissed as cranks, their fussy eating habits tend to make them
unpopular with dinner party hosts and guests alike.

But now it seems they may have the last laugh, with research showing vegetarians
are more intelligent than their meat-eating friends.

A study of thousands of men and women revealed that those who stick to a
vegetarian diet have IQs that are around five points higher than those who
regularly eat meat.

Writing in the British Medical Journal, the researchers say it isn't clear why
veggies are brainier - but admit the fruit and veg-rich vegetarian diet could
somehow boost brain power.

The researchers, from the University of Southampton, tracked the fortunes of more
than 8,000 volunteers for 20 years.

At the age of ten, the boys and girls sat a series of tests designed to determine
their IQ.

When they reached the age of 30, they were asked whether they were vegetarian and their
answers compared to their childhood IQ score.

Around four and a half per cent of the adults were vegetarian - a figure that is broadly
in line with that found in the general population. [more like twice the rate of the gen pop.]

However, further analysis of the results showed those who were brainiest as children were
more likely to have become vegetarian as adults, shunning both meat and fish.

The typical adult veggie had a childhood IQ of around 105 - around five points higher than
those who continued to eat meat as they grew up.

The vegetarians were also more likely to have gained degrees and hold down high-powered jobs.

There was no difference in IQ between strict vegetarians and those who classed themselves as
veggie but still ate fish or chicken.

***However, vegans - vegetarians who also avoid dairy products - scored significantly lower,
averaging an IQ score of 95 at the age of 10.***

Etc.

<snip>

There you have it: vegans are ****tards. Didn't need a study to figure that out.

chico

chico wrote:
> * fruitella wrote:
> > Or is it the other way around - kids with higher IQ scores move towards
> > vegetarian dietary habits. Perhaps both.
>
> Very unlikely.
>

I say do more surveys and lets find out for sure. Now that is very
unlikely.

> > Also how can one be eating fish and chicken and yet be considered a
> > vegetarian?
>
> Surveys involve self-reporting, not exactly an objective measurement. And this
> one consisted of volunteers. Perhaps the differences in IQ can be chalked up
> to brighter meat-eaters having more important things to do than fill out survey
> forms. The fact that there was no detected difference between vegetarians and
> those who called themselves vegetarians but still ate meat shows that if there's
> anything to the purported findings it's that not all meat is bad.
>

Meat eaters are usually mindless drones who follow the same routes in
the supermarket, and have a very limited diet.

Irony.


> ***However, vegans - vegetarians who also avoid dairy products - scored significantly lower,
> averaging an IQ score of 95 at the age of 10.***
>
> Etc.
>
> <snip>
>
> There you have it: vegans are ****tards. Didn't need a study to figure that out.
>

The jury is out on that one

Blueshark wrote:
> chico wrote:
> > * fruitella wrote:
> > > Or is it the other way around - kids with higher IQ scores move towards
> > > vegetarian dietary habits. Perhaps both.
> >
> > Very unlikely.
> >
>
> I say do more surveys and lets find out for sure. Now that is very
> unlikely.
>
> > > Also how can one be eating fish and chicken and yet be considered a
> > > vegetarian?
> >
> > Surveys involve self-reporting, not exactly an objective measurement. And this
> > one consisted of volunteers. Perhaps the differences in IQ can be chalked up
> > to brighter meat-eaters having more important things to do than fill out survey
> > forms. The fact that there was no detected difference between vegetarians and
> > those who called themselves vegetarians but still ate meat shows that if there's
> > anything to the purported findings it's that not all meat is bad.
> >
>
> Meat eaters are usually mindless drones who follow the same routes in
> the supermarket, and have a very limited diet.
>
> Irony.
>
>
> > ***However, vegans - vegetarians who also avoid dairy products - scored significantly lower,
> > averaging an IQ score of 95 at the age of 10.***
> >
> > Etc.
> >
> > <snip>
> >
> > There you have it: vegans are ****tards. Didn't need a study to figure that out.
> >
>
> The jury is out on that one

I know that higher IQ people tend to be happier and less stressed out
and therefore dont have to have 'outlets' in food 9 and non veg tend to
be tasty thus compensating for higher stress).

My own example. there was this one time when I was working in this high
pressure, really stressed envrionment and we used to go for great
lunches just ti destress. One day a friend says we've been living too
rich and why not cut down on the meat and go veg. i say ok only to find
at lunch time, I back to eating meat because it was the only joy I got
from a working day.

Another example. I follow my mother to India to her native place, a
remote, rustic village where nothing much happens- and there's no meat!
I didnt miss it at all! ( an occassional egg now and again). No stress,
no need for compensation, no need for tasty diet, no need for meat.

Yer Foller?