As a child's IQ rises, his taste for meat in adulthood¹ declines, a new study suggests.

British researchers have found that children's IQ predicts their likelihood of becoming vegetarians³(1) as young adults -- lowering their risk for cardiovascular(2) disease in the process. The finding could explain the link between smarts and better health, the investigators⁴ say.

"Brighter people tend to have healthier dietary(3) habits," concluded lead author Catharine Gale⁵, a senior research fellow at the MRC Epidemiology Resource Centre.

Recent studies suggest that vegetarianism⁶ may be associated with lower cholesterol(4), reduced risk of obesity⁷ and heart disease. This might explain why children with high IQs tend to have a lower risk of heart disease in later life.

"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(5) 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 aged⁸ 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 vegetarian² 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(6), 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.

英国研究人员发现小孩智商可以预示成年后变成素食者的可能性，也就是降低心血管疾病的几率。研究人员说此项研究能够解释为什么聪明的人会更健康。

流行病信息中心高级研究员、本研究主要作者Catharine Gale说：“聪明的人一般选择较健康的饮食习惯。”

最近的研究显示素食有利于降低胆固醇吸收、减少肥胖和心脏病几率。这也是为什么高智商的孩子在晚年不容易患心脏病的原因。

Gale说：“我们从其它研究中发现，聪明的孩子会和成年人一样跟随健康的流行趋势，他们更不容易吸烟、更不容易肥胖、更不容易血压高、却参与更多的锻炼。本研究将提供更多的证据证明智商高的人拥有更健康的生活方式。”

Gale和同事们搜集了近8200个30岁男女的资料，其中包括他们10岁时的智商记录。

Gale说：“十岁时候智商较高的小孩在三十的时候更容易成为素食主义者。”

研究人员发现4.5%的受测者为素食者。其中2.5%为严格素食主义者，33.6%称自己是素食者，但是吃鱼和鸡。

研究人员说这二者的智商并没有差距。