Schizophrenia is a disabling brain disorder that affects around 2.4 million adults in the US. Onset of the condition usually occurs in early adolescence, and it is characterized by hallucinations, delusions, abnormal thoughts and agitated body movements.

Dr. Kenneth S. Kendler of the Virginia Commonwealth University, say their findings challenge past studies indicating that people who are intelligent are more likely to be mentally ill. "If you're really smart, your genes for schizophrenia don't have much of a chance of acting," says Dr. Kendler. Dr. Kendler and colleagues set out to assess the association between IQ and subsequent schizophrenia risk among the general population and those have a genetic predisposition for the disorder. The results of the analysis revealed that individuals with a low IQ were more likely to develop schizophrenia than those with a high IQ.

This relationship was strongest among participants with a family history of the disorder; among cousin, half-sibling and full-sibling pairs, the individual with the lowest IQ was at highest risk for schizophrenia.

Commenting on the team's findings, Dr. Kendler says: "What really predicted risk for schizophrenia is how much you deviate from the predicted IQ that we get from your relatives. If you're quite a bit lower, that carries a high risk for schizophrenia. Not achieving the IQ that you should have based on your genetic constitution and family background seems to most strongly predispose for schizophrenia."

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