Forget good looks… love is in the air

WE all know the story… eyes meet across a crowded room and it’s love at first sight.

But we may actually fall in love at first sniff, researchers say. Psychologists looking through three decades of research discovered that how a prospective partner smells is key.

Someone’s scent forms an important part of our first impression of them.

Also, while we tend to pick a partner with a face that is similar to our own, they must smell different to us – an evolutionary safeguard to avoid in-breeding because those who are related to us tend to smell similar.

The sound of someone’s voice was also important.

The report, by Polish and British scientists, says we form our first impressions on others based on sound and smell, even from some distance. How someone smells can give hints about their personality, age and how healthy or fertile they are.

Women appear to care more about how someone smells than men, according to the review, which was published in the journal, Frontiers in Psychology.

Meanwhile, we use vocal cues to judge a person’s emotional state and dominance.

Study co-author Katarzyna Pisanski, from the University of Sussex, said: “Women are attracted to very masculine voices because they associate them with a larger body size and dominance, but how much they prefer them varies.” – Daily Mail