You may think you’ve figured out the how and why of sexual attraction by figuring out what you like and dislike in a partner – but you’d be surprised to know that there is SO much more at play when it comes to two people feeling attracted to each other!! Here are 11 unexpected facts about sexual attraction you need to know. 😉
1. It gets influenced by your parents’ age
Say you were born to your parents when they were in their thirties, chances are you then would grow up to find relatively older looking faces – slightly weathered and more mature – much more attractive.
2. Your eyes do the talking…
Or, rather, your limbal ring does. It’s the dark circle around your iris that enhances the white area of your eye. Studies show that both men and women find faces with prominent limbal rings much more attractive, because prominent limbal rings are a sign of a healthy and young partner as they keep fading with age.
3. How hungry are you?
‘Coz that really affects the kind of person you’d like to date. Studies show how people tend to feel more attracted towards curvier people when they are feeling hungry. This happens because a curvy person appears to them as being well fed. Basically, whenever we feel uncertain, we wish to connect to stronger personalities – and heavier built people come across as being just that when we’re feeling hungry..
4. It’s in the air?
Some men release an often odourless testosterone derivative in their sweat, called androstadienone. Studies have shown how a fifteen minute long exposure to it can make women feel much more aroused and attracted towards the man it’s coming from. And this effect can easily last up to an hour!
5. You become squeaky
When women feel attracted to a guy, they get really excited about it, and in turn their pitch becomes a notch higher. Also studies have shown that men feel more attracted towards women with high-pitched voices as partners.
6. Maybe it was your body talking…
How attractive you appear to another person has little to do with the way you look and so much to do with the way your body communicates to him. Gestures like a smile with raised eyebrows, short, darting glances, hair flicks and slow neck caresses can really attract people towards you!
7. What did you wear?
Was it red? It’s a fact that the color red does make you look so much more attractive than anything else. The logic behind this being that red is perceived as the colour associated with fertility, and hence anyone wearing it comes across as being sexually receptive too. Oh, and that works for all hues of red – from crimson to fuchsia!
8. Playing hard to get is not that bad a strategy!
People who appear to be less available come across as more desirable to the opposite sex – as all things that are exclusive in nature do. However if you are just looking for a fling, playing hard to get backfires.
9. Maybe you were drunk…
Alcohol does alter our vision and our perception, and people appear to us far more appealing than they would otherwise. This is called the Beer Goggles phenomenon, and it’s now an established truth that when we’re drunk and high, we find faces of the opposite sex 25 % more attractive than a sober person would.
10. Your menstrual cycle also affects who you feel attracted to!
When women are at their fertility peak, they tend to feel much more attracted to “macho” men, (with higher testosterone levels, deeper voices, muscular stature, etc) because they come across as being more virile partners.
11. And it also does depends on the season!
Yup, that’s true. Patterns of sexual attraction change according to the season too. During winters, men feel far more attracted to female bodies (because of their need to want to cuddle up against their warmth) than they do in summers!
GIFs: Tumblr
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