Forget beer goggles (you know, the ones that make Barry in accounts look like Channing Tatum at the office Christmas party), according to a new study one glass of wine will make you appear more attractive than you actually are. However, according to researchers at the University of Bristol the effect reduces the more you drink.
The researchers asked a group (an admittedly small sample) of 40 heterosexual men and women to be part of an attractiveness-rating poll.
The group was presented with a photograph of an individual photographed completely sober, and then after drinking the equivalent of 250ml of wine (a rather large glass) or the equivalent of 500 ml of wine (two thirds of a bottle). They were then asked which of the images was most attractive.
The findings included that that those who were photographed after drinking a single glass of wine were rated as more attractive than those who were sober. Meanwhile this wasn’t the case for those who consumed more than one glass of wine.
The increased attractiveness after one glass of wine was put down to changed appearances- the researchers suggested that facial flushing caused by alcohol could be perceived as attractive, and lower doses of alcohol can be mood boosting – increasing subtle smiles and muscle relaxation.
So, the case for drinking in moderation seems fairly sound, then?
It’s something to think about on your next online date, anyway.