A good reason to celebrate World Vegetarian Day on October 1: A British study concludes that vegetarianism is the choice of intelligent people!

The British Medical Journal published a study by the University of Southampton in England. The university selected a sample of children from 20 years ago, who had taken an IQ test and merited very high IQ scores. The now 30-year-old adults were asked survey questions about career, finances, civil status, and lifestyle. Only 4.5% of the respondents said that they followed a vegetarian diet, but on closer inspection, the vegetarians had an average IQ that was higher by 5 points than the average of the non-vegetarians. The study also found no difference in the IQ scores between vegetarians and vegans.

What is still open for discussion, however, is whether vegetarianism itself leads to a higher IQ, or if intelligent people are more likely to become vegetarians. Many intelligent people may become vegetarians because they are better informed about the health benefits of vegetarianism, or they are more active in practicing environmental awareness and the protection of animal rights. By eliminating the consumption of meat and animal products, vegetarian diets generally tend to be lower in fat and cholesterol, but at the same time, they miss out on certain nutrients that the brain also needs.