Recent data, published by the University of New Mexico and reported by Newsweek, shows that there is a link between lower IQs and prevalence of infectious diseases. Comparing data on national disease burdens (life years lost due to infectious diseases) with average intelligence scores, the authors found a striking inverse correlationaround 67 percent. They also found that the cognitive ability is rising in some countries than in others, and IQ scores have risen as nations developa phenomenon known as the Flynn effect.
In the range of DALYs/1000 capita from 13 (lowest) to 289 (highest), WHO's latest data indicates that India is at 65 while Pakistan is slightly better at 58. In terms of total number of deaths per year from disease, India stands at 2.7 million deaths while Pakistani death toll is 318, 400 people. Among other South Asian nations, Afghanistan's DALYs/1000 is 255, Bangladesh 64 and Sri Lanka 61. By contrast, the DALYs/1000 figures are 14 for Singapore and 32 for China.
Haq's Musings: Indians and Pakistanis Suffer Heavy Disease Burdens
