Look, we’ve all been there. You go out for drinks with friends, get absolutely hammered, start making out with a cute stranger, and then the next thing you know, you’re waking up in their bed with a killer headache the following morning. Drunken hookups are no big deal (though hopefully, you used protection!), especially since you likely write it off due to the alcohol. However, new research has disproven the idea of “beer goggles” clouding your judgment to that extent, so it might be time to go back to the drawing board for excuses.
- You can’t argue with science, right? A study published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs found that alcohol doesn’t actually make people more attractive to you. In other words, you didn’t go to bed with a 10 and wake up with a 5 because you pounded one too many PBRs.
- The study focused on men. That’s important to note since only 18 pairs of men were included in the admittedly limited research. The participants were used to test the idea of alcohol making people hotter than they’d normally be if everyone was totally sober. Oddly enough, there was no difference.
- Even the researchers were pretty surprised. After all, we know alcohol impairs judgment and cognitive function as a whole, so you’d think the whole “beer goggles” thing would make sense, but research says no. As Dr. Molly Bowdring, a professor at Stanford University and the study’s lead author, told The Post, “Conventional wisdom would suggest that alcohol leads people to perceive others as more physically attractive.” However, their findings showed the opposite.
- There is one thing alcohol does give men, and that’s more confidence. While they might not find women more attractive after a few drinks, they do get a bit of “liquid courage” when it comes to putting the moves on. “To our knowledge, this is the first study to look at whether people choose to interact with more attractive people after drinking,” Bowdring explained.
- So wait, why weren’t included in this study? It seems a rather obvious and unforgivable oversight, but it was done purposely and for a good reason. “Prior work has shown that alcohol-related social rewards are strongest for male drinkers, which means there’s a greater likelihood to observe alcohols effects among this group,” Bowdring revealed.
- Men who claim “beer goggles” made them hook up with a woman are going against the research. Bowdring’s study proves that it’s just not the case. That being said, throwing back a few beers can give guys serious rizz — they just have to hope the women they talk to are drunk enough to fall for it.
