September 1, 2013
Study: Financial Stress Affects the Brain
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 1 MIN.
A new study finds that being short on cash may make you a bit slower in the brain.
Scientists gave IQ tests to shoppers in New Jersey and cash-strapped farmers in India. They found that people worrying about having enough money to pay their bills tend to lose the equivalent of 13 IQ points.
The scientists say financial stress monopolizes thinking, making other calculations slower and more difficult, sort of like the effects of going without sleep for a night. They say this money-and-brain crunch applies to about 100 million Americans who face financial squeezes.
The study was published in Friday's issue of the journal Science.
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
