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G. David Batty, PhD, Ian J. Deary, PhD, Ingrid Schoon, PhD, Carol Emslie, PhD, Kate Hunt, PhD, MSc and Catharine R. Gale, PhD

G. David Batty is with the UK Medical Research Council Social & Public Health Sciences Unit, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland, and the Department of Psychology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland. Ian J. Deary is with the Department of Psychology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh. Ingrid Schoon is with the Department of Psychology, City University, London, England. Carol Emslie and Kate Hunt are with the UK Medical Research Council Social & Public Health Sciences Unit, University of Glasgow, Glasgow. Catharine R. Gale is with the UK Medical Research Council Epidemiology Resource Centre, University of Southampton, Southampton General Hospital, Southampton, England.

Correspondence: Reprint requests should be sent to G. David Batty, MRC Social & Public Health Sciences Unit, University of Glasgow, 4 Lilybank Gardens, Glasgow, Scotland, UK G12 8R2. (e-mail: david-b{at}msoc.mrc.gla.ac.uk).

Objectives. We examined the potential relation of mental ability test scores at age 10 years with alcohol problems and alcohol intake at age 30 years.

Methods. We used data from a prospective observational study involving 8170 members of a birth cohort from Great Britain born in 1970. Data included mental ability scores at age 10 years and responses to inquiries about alcohol intake and problems at age 30 years.

Results. After adjustment for potential mediating and confounding factors, cohort members with higher childhood mental ability scores had an increased prevalence of problem drinking in adulthood. This association was stronger among women (odds ratio [OR]_{1 SD increase in ability} = 1.38; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.16, 1.64) than men (OR_{1 SD increase in ability} = 1.17; CI = 1.04, 1.28; P for interaction = .004). Childhood mental ability was also related to a higher average intake of alcohol and to drinking more frequently. Again, these gradients were stronger among women than among men.

Conclusions. In this large-scale cohort study, higher childhood mental ability was related to alcohol problems and higher alcohol intake in adult life. These unexpected results warrant examination in other studies.

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				C. R. Gale, I. J. Deary, S. H. Boyle, J. Barefoot, L. H. Mortensen, and G. D. Batty Cognitive Ability in Early Adulthood and Risk of 5 Specific Psychiatric Disorders in Middle Age: The Vietnam Experience Study Arch Gen Psychiatry, December 1, 2008; 65(12): 1410 - 1418. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]