Love really is the sweetest thing

IF you want to make sure your date is sweet on you, offer them dessert.

Eating or drinking something sweet can make us more interested in a potential partner, research shows.

US scientists described a would-be dating partner to a group of 125 volunteers before half were given a sweet drink and the others were handed water.

Questioned afterwards, those who had been given the sugary drink expressed greater interest in the potential date.

They were also more positive when asked to imagine how a relationship with that person might turn out.

A second study, in which 155 participants ate either sweet biscuits or savoury crisps, showed similar results. Brain scans have already shown that similar brain systems underlie sweet taste and feelings of love.

The team, from Purdue University in Indiana, believe the hormone dopamine, which helps to control the brain’s reward and pleasure centres, may have a role.

Researcher Dongning Ren wrote in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships: ‘Sweet food taste increases dopamine levels.

‘Although dopamine is involved in many experiences, it may be part of the link between taste and romantic interest.’

Previous research has also shown that thinking about romantic love makes people perceive food to be sweeter.