Scientific American reports a survey of
Mensa members (limited to those who score high on IQ tests) asking about their physical and mental health. The original research was reported in the scientific journal
Intelligence. The key finding:
The biggest differences between the Mensa group and the general population were seen for mood disorders and anxiety disorders. More than a quarter (26.7%) of the sample reported that they had been formally diagnosed with a mood disorder, while 20% reported an anxiety disorder—far higher than the national averages of around 10% for each. The differences were smaller, but still statistically significant and practically meaningful, for most of the other disorders. The prevalence of environmental allergies was triple the national average (33% vs. 11%).
However, SA drops the other shoe, and more power to them for doing so.
It’s also possible that people who join Mensa differ from other people in ways other than just IQ. For example, people preoccupied with intellectual pursuits may spend less time than the average person on physical exercise and social interaction, both of which have been shown to have broad benefits for psychological and physical health.
Or my favorite explanation of the findings: it's screwed up bright people who join Mensa. Healthy smarties are too busy living and loving to hang with a
Big, Bang Theory crowd of the psychological walking wounded. Instead of "Superior IQs associated with mental and physical disorders" the subtitle should be "Mensa membership associated with mental and physical disorders."
