Swiping right on a hottie with a body? You might want to rethink that strategy.
New research out of Florida State University has found that the attractiveness of your partner can have serious repercussions for your mental health and self esteem.
The study looked at 113 newlywed couples, evaluating each partner’s desire to lose weight as well as how a third party rated each person’s overall attractiveness.
Women evaluated as less attractive than their significant other (way harsh) were found to be more motivated to diet and strived to be thin.
“The results reveal that having a physically attractive husband may have negative consequences for wives, especially if those wives are not particularly attractive,” Doctoral student Tania Reynolds says.
“The research suggests there might be social factors playing a role in women’s disordered eating,” Reynolds said. “It might be helpful to identify women at risk of developing more extreme weight-loss behaviors, which have been linked to other forms of psychological distress, such as depression, anxiety, substance abuse and dissatisfaction with life.”
But if you’re hotter than your husband, you might be in luck. Those judged to be more attractive than their partner were found not to have extra motivation to diet.
The study advanced existing research that found marriages tended to be more successful when wives were more attractive than the husband.
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