Teenage Fitness Related To Increased Intelligence

As noted in the LA Times, a new research study shows that better physical fitness in teenagers is associated with higher intelligence:

The authors come to the conclusion that it is the exercise that makes the teenagers more intelligent.

While the association between physcial fitness and mental abilities is not completely surprising, it's not necessarily an obvious point. We tend to think of mental ability and physical ability as two different sorts of things.

But maybe the physical and the mental are not as different as we might imagine. After all, doing well in either area comes under the heading of ability.

The study found that having better cardiovascular health as a teenager was linked to not only higher scores on intelligence tests, but more education and a higher income years down the road.

The study authors also determined that those who showed cardiovascular fitness improvements between age 15 and 18 had higher intelligence scores than those whose fitness levels dropped.

But you could just as easily come to the conclusion that being more intelligent led teenagers to take better care of themselves, to work harder and to pursue fitness goals.

An energetic attitude toward life is consistent with both improved physical health and mental health.

Therefore it is no surprise that teenagers that are more active are also more intelligent. Intelligence and fitness are characteristics of individuals who are making the most of their abilities.

These are the characteristics of people who are willing to do what is needed to accomplish their goals in life, even if it requires some effort.

via http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/booster_shots/2009/12/fit-teens-could-be-smarter-teens.html

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