Donald Trump's 'stable genius' may be turning off voters

Donald Trump's recent health checks came back with good results, amid questions over his physical and mental abilities.

On top of his health which was described by White House doctor Ronny Jackson as "excellent", his cognitive abilities were also tested, with Trump scoring full marks, performing "exceedingly well" on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment which is used to detect early signs of Alzheimer's disease or small cognitive dysfunction.

Of course this may not surprise Trump himself, who is self-described as a "very stable genius". However, a study from 2017 found that leaders who had high levels of intelligence and cognitive skills suffered from less public appeal.

Researchers from the University of California carried out tests to determine how individuals react to people with varying levels of intelligence.

The researchers looked at 379 male and female business leaders in 30 countries, across fields that included banking, retail and technology.

According to the Scientific American, all of the managers took an IQ test for the July 2017 study and were later rated by colleagues based on these results. The study found that a good IQ lead to factors such as "effectiveness, strategy formation, and vision."

But the results also found that while there was a general positive correlation between the popularity of an individual and their IQ score, some of those who took the IQ tests may have gone via complicated routes to solve their problems, which made it harder for followers to relate to them.

Trump also used his recent tests to take another swipe at his predecessors. Asked about the situation with North Korea, Trump was talking about how Bill Clinton, George W Bush and Barack Obama had dealt with the hermit nation.

"I guess they all realised they were going to have to leave it to a president that scored highest on tests," he said.

His first official health check as president found that he was in good health despite being overweight with high cholesterol and living off a diet of fast food and fizzy drinks.

Trump, 71, told reporters that he gets more exercise that people realise: "I get exercise. I mean I walk, I this, I that. I run over to a building next door. I get more exercise than people think."