Mental illness risk four times higher if you're bright

Published on Tuesday 2 February 2010 21:57

THE cleverest children in school are also those most likely to suffer a serious mental illness as adults, research reveals.

Scientists found that straight-A students were four times more likely to develop bipolar disorder than children with average grades.

Previous research and anecdotal evidence from famous and creative individuals have suggested a link between high IQ and bipolar disorder.

Famous sufferers from history are thought to include the artist Van Gogh, the composer Beethoven, the scientist Albert Einstein and the author Virginia Woolf. Until now, the scientific evidence for such an association has been weak.

The latest study, published in the British Journal of Psychiatry, looked at 713,876 individuals in Sweden, where all children take exams at the age of 15 and 16.

The researchers used hospital records and school reports to match academic achievement with the chances of having bipolar disorder between the ages of 17 and 31.

Students with excellent exam results had an almost fourfold greater likelihood of being diagnosed with the condition than those with average grades. Children with the poorest grades were also more at risk, the research showed. They were almost twice as likely to develop bipolar disorder as average achievers.

Lead researcher Dr James MacCabe, from the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London, said: "We found that achieving an A-grade is associated with increased risk for bipolar disorder, particularly in humanities and to a lesser extent in science subjects.

"A-grades in Swedish and music had particularly strong associations, supporting the literature which consistently finds associations between linguistic and musical creativity and bipolar disorder."

The scientists suggested several possible reasons for the link.

They pointed out that people in elevated mood states can often be witty and inventive, and able to link ideas in innovative ways. People with bipolar disorder also tended to be highly emotional, which may help their talent in art, music and literature.

Thirdly, people who are mildly manic often have strong stamina and can maintain concentration for long periods of time.

All of these traits might help students perform better in creative subjects, but also predispose them to bipolar disorder, the researchers said.

But Dr MacCabe stressed that being clever at school did not usually lead to mental illness.

Billy Watson, chief executive of the Scottish Association for Mental Health (SAMH), said: "We know that 1 per cent of the UK population is likely to develop bipolar disorder in their lifetime; therefore any insight into this complex mental health problem should be taken seriously.

"While SAMH welcomes this new research into bipolar disorder and find the conclusions extremely interesting, we would also urge caution in considering any research into mental health problems in isolation."

BIPOLAR DISORDER'S EXTREMES

BIPOLAR disorder – also known as manic depression – is characterised by swings in mood from high to low.

In the manic phase – also referred to as hypomania – patients may have excessive amounts of energy and feel little need for sleep.

Other symptoms can include inflated self-esteem, loss of inhibitions, and grandiose ideas or delusions.

During a depressive episode, patients may have feelings of hopelessness and despair, broken sleep, overwhelming negativity and difficulty in carrying on day-to-day life activities.

Sufferers may want to withdraw from society or contemplate suicide.