7 Random Things That Control Who You're Attracted To
There's no place like the Internet when it comes to manipulating what we find attractive.
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A / Shutterstock You do a million little things every day from the moment you wake up to the second you go to bed. Even though you don't realize it, everything you do (or don't do) isn't just having an impact on who you are and what you will be, but they also have a hand in whom you're attracted.
You might think the teeny tiny things that make up your life are insignificant, but you're wrong.
Of those things, did you ever really think that your Internet consumption could have anything to do with what men or women you think are hot? It may sound a little suspect, but it's true.
Here are some other run-of-the-mill things that would never cross your mind that can either make or break your attraction to someone else.
Here are 7 random things that control who you're attracted to:
1. Going online
We already know the media has a major say in how we view the world, so once we get online, with all that media jumping in our faces, there's no place like the Internet when it comes to manipulating what we find attractive. A study done at St. Andrews University found that women who spend a lot of time on the Internet find masculine men more attractive and men find feminine and thin ladies to be the best-looking.
In contrast, those who don't have Internet access found the exact opposite to be attractive: women preferred feminine-looking dudes, and guys were all about women who were more masculine in appearance. According to the study, Internet "surfing" women found Russell Crowe, in all his masculinity, to be an "ideal."
2. Skipping lunch
It's going to sound weird, but a 2006 study found that men when were hungry their taste (no pun intended) in women changed. It's with those empty bellies that guys found heavier women to be more attractive. Researchers think this has to do with "resource scarcity," which means that women who weigh more are basically advertising that they know where to go to get that stomach full and happy again.
3. Taking the pill
Ladies, we're naturally attracted to men whose MHC genes are very different from our own, but when we take the Pill, those hormones mess up our perspective and smelling efficiency (how we sniff out our match.)
Studies have even found that some women are so affected by the Pill that when they go off of it, their attraction to their current mate could come to an end, causing the relationship to fizzle. Women are also attracted to different men than usual when they're ovulating.
4. Considering Relationships
A study found that when men are looking for just a fling or a short-term relationship, they're more attracted to women with feminine faces.
Although what's considered "feminine" can be subjective, it does go to show that men’s attraction hinders what they want out of a relationship. We knew that looks have a lot to do with attraction, but leave it to dudes to have their attraction to women altered by, well, their libido's needs.
5. Lowering our standards
People are just so scared to be alone!
A study done by the University of Toronto found that when push comes to shove and it looks like we just might be lonely forever, we lower our standards of whom we find attractive. While back in our heyday, we might have gone for the best-looking one in the crowd, if things start looking sparse, our attraction to less-than-par individuals kicks into gear.
6. Smelling lavender and pumpkin pie at the same time
Although foods that produce pheromones have yet to be discovered, one study done at the Smell and Taste Research Foundation in Chicago found a 40 percent "increase in penile blood flow when lavender and pumpkin pie were smelled together."
What this means for men is that if they didn't think you were attractive before, one whiff of that combo and they’re going to be second-guessing their initial lack of sexual response to you.
7. Keeping the same circle of people
Not to get all Silence of the Lambs on you, but "we begin by coveting what we see every day," and studies agree. Keeping the same people within our proximity, ie. sitting next to the same person in class every day, forces us into being attracted to people whom we wouldn't fall for normally. Honestly, it's kinda easy to get yourself all hot and bothered about someone we can never quite shake out of our daily lives.
Amanda Chatel is a writer who divides her time between NYC and Paris. She's a regular contributor to Bustle and Glamour, with bylines at Harper's Bazaar, The Atlantic, Forbes, Livingly, Mic, The Bolde, Huffington Post, and others.