Facial appearance is a cue to oestrogen levels in women

[ursidae]

Facial appearance is a cue to oestrogen levels in women
"Although many accounts of facial attractiveness propose that femininity in women's faces indicates high levels of oestrogen, there is little empirical evidence in support of this assumption. Here, we used assays for urinary metabolites of oestrogen (oestrone-3-glucuronide, E1G) and progesterone (pregnanediol-3-glucuronide, P3G) to investigate the relationship between circulating gonadal hormones and ratings of the femininity, attractiveness and apparent health of women's faces. Positive correlations were observed between late follicular oestrogen and ratings of femininity, attractiveness and health. Positive correlations of luteal progesterone and health and attractiveness ratings were marginally significant. Ratings of facial attributions did not relate to hormone levels for women wearing make-up when photographed. There was no effect of sex of rater on the relationships between oestrogen and ratings of facial appearance. These findings demonstrate that female facial appearance holds detectable cues to reproductive health that are considered attractive by other people."

Composite faces of the (a) 10 women with highest and (b) 10 with lowest levels of late follicular oestrogen metabolite (oestrone-3-glucuronide, E1G).

"The high oestrogen face was rated as much more feminine, attractive and healthy than the low reproductive hormone face (all t>6.31, p<0.001, d.f.=20) using a one-sample t-test on strength of preference. These results cannot be due to a mediating effect of age on facial appearance and hormones as there was no significant difference in age of the composites (low, M=20.8, s.d.=1.5; high, M=20.4, s.d.=1.8; t=0.54, p=0.60, d.f.=18). All face ratings were highly consistent (α>0.9)."


"The construction of the composite faces of the women highest and lowest in oestrogen levels allowed a visualization of our correlational results. There appear to be multiple visual differences between the two face groups evident in the composites. The oestrogen female face was consistently rated as more attractive, feminine and healthy looking. Future studies should address the nature of facial cues related to hormone levels.

The current finding that oestrogen predicts facial appearance has implications for the evolutionary approach to facial attractiveness. The female face does seem to hold detectable cues to underlying health and fertility, as indexed by oestrogen levels. These cues are used in judgements relevant to mate choice decisions. These detectable cues to reproductive hormones may have shaped male preferences, and could therefore provide an adaptive explanation for the cross-cultural tendency for feminine female faces to be found most attractive."

 

[Riesensackteil]

Does not seem like an useful study.
The left picture is associated with more estrogen being disposed?

 

[ursidae]

Does not seem like an useful study.
The left picture is associated with more estrogen being disposed?

yeah, left face is higher estrogen, rated more attractive, healthy and feminine

 

[Cloudhands]

yeah, left face is higher estrogen, rated more attractive, healthy and feminine

the point he was making when he said "disposed" was that there were more metabolites in their urine

 

[haidut]

It is the progesterone/estrogen ratio that is much more important than absolute levels. Also, as another users mentioned above, measuring only the glucuronidated forms of hormones in urine is not a reliable method of determining body levels unless the levels in urine are so high as to suggest a tumor somewhere. When the levels are in the normal range, then urine test by itself is basically a measurement of how well kidneys and liver are functioning, which would mean the woman on the left is simply healthier, as they also say.
So, it would have been better to check progesterone levels in blood say 3 times a month, for 2-3 months and get average values for the follicular and luteal phases. Then to the same for estradiol and also measure prolactin on the same day estradiol was checked. Then look at the progesterone/estradiol ratio while also taking prolactin into account.
IMO, the woman on the right looks androgynous, so it might be a good idea to measure DHEA-S, which is often elevated in that phenotype - i.e. adrenal hyperactivity - and maybe also cortisol, to assess adrenal function, Since estrogen masculinizes women (but feminizes men) I would expect to see either low progesterone/estrogen and/or high DHEA-S levels in the phenotype on the right.

 

[Mauritio]

Yes , I doubt the method of measurement reflects what's going on in the body.
A similar study-design that uses something like haiduts nail test would be interesting, though.

 

[Cloudhands]

i think it makes sense. Estrogen rises as women are ovulating, why wouldnt their bodies make them "more attractive". But to draw any conclusions from this like "therefor estrogen = good" is not only immature, but also objecting to women. Who would want to be attractive at the cost of terribly painful PMS, terrible digestion, moods, etc.. Many women are very attractive but have terrible moods and personalities. And i dont think the female on the right is terribly less attractive then her ovulating self on the left. We all know that progesterone makes people more pale, but im sure shes a lot more pleasing to be around on the right.

 

[Nomane Euger]

i think it makes sense. Estrogen rises as women are ovulating, why wouldnt their bodies make them "more attractive". But to draw any conclusions from this like "therefor estrogen = good" is not only immature, but also objecting to women. Who would want to be attractive at the cost of terribly painful PMS, terrible digestion, moods, etc.. Many women are very attractive but have terrible moods and personalities. And i dont think the female on the right is terribly less attractive then her ovulating self on the left. We all know that progesterone makes people more pale, but im sure shes a lot more pleasing to be around on the right.

hi,why are you sure that the woman on the right is a lot more pleasing to be arround?the left one, i can watch her,the right one if i watch her its disturbing

 

[Cloudhands]

hi,why are you sure that the woman on the right is a lot more pleasing to be arround?the left one, i can watch her,the right one if i watch her its disturbing

because the one on the right has lower estrogen levels, thats what im trying to say, if you judge a book by its cover youll find disappointment in life

 

[Nomane Euger]

because the one on the right has lower estrogen levels, thats what im trying to say, if you judge a book by its cover youll find disappointment in life

are women that are disturbing to watch or ugly women more appreciable to be arround?

 

[aniciete]

are women that are disturbing to watch or ugly women more appreciable to be arround?

No lol

 

[Cloudhands]

are women that are disturbing to watch or ugly women more appreciable to be arround?

i think youre missing my point

 

[opethfeldt]

The one on the left looks more attractive, less stressed and healthy. That said, she also has a look of being potentially more "evil" or manipulative. Higher in dark triad traits, which matches my experience with high estrogen women. I'd want to date the one on the right but for short term, I'd take the one on the left any day.

 

[ursidae]

i think it makes sense. Estrogen rises as women are ovulating, why wouldnt their bodies make them "more attractive". But to draw any conclusions from this like "therefor estrogen = good" is not only immature, but also objecting to women. Who would want to be attractive at the cost of terribly painful PMS, terrible digestion, moods, etc.. Many women are very attractive but have terrible moods and personalities. And i dont think the female on the right is terribly less attractive then her ovulating self on the left. We all know that progesterone makes people more pale, but im sure shes a lot more pleasing to be around on the right.

there are major differences between the two pictures in terms of face structure and ratios that can't be down to ovulation or current health status. Picture on the left has a shorter chin, a more horizontally developed U shaped jaw rather than vertically grown V shaped jaw, a wider mouth, smaller forehead, wider-set smaller eyes. This is probably about prenatal environment and GH levels during puberty. Face on the right looks high GH, face on the left is more neotenous

 

[MetabolicTrash]

Come on, people (guys specifically) ... They are both equally doable.

You won't find me complaining if either or both warmed up to me.

If you want discrepancy put Rachel Dratch next to Jennifer Lopez.

Would be more ? to see some of these comparing guys though.

 

[Cloudhands]

there are major differences between the two pictures in terms of face structure and ratios that can't be down to ovulation or current health status. Picture on the left has a shorter chin, a more horizontally developed U shaped jaw rather than vertically grown V shaped jaw, a wider mouth, smaller forehead, wider-set smaller eyes. This is probably about prenatal environment and GH levels during puberty. Face on the right looks high GH, face on the left is more neotenous

i thought they were the same woman just with pictures taken at different times. now im not so sure lol.

 

[ursidae]

i thought they were the same woman just with pictures taken at different times. now im not so sure lol.

its not the same women, left picture is a composite of women with high reporductive hormones, right picture is a composite of women with low reproductive hormones

"Average faces were created in order to visualize the differences in facial appearance between women with high and low reproductive hormones. Composites were constructed from the faces of the females with the highest 10 and lowest 10 oestrogen using the methods outlined in Benson & Perrett (1993) and Tiddeman et al. (2001). See figure 1 for composite faces. Separate composites were not constructed for progesterone levels, because they were highly intercorrelated with oestrogen levels (see §3b); therefore, the composites would have contained the majority of the same faces. Composites were created from oestrogen rather than progesterone as the latter was not as strongly related to the face ratings (see §3b).
Participants were instructed to provide their sample of urine from the midstream of the first urination of the morning of each day of testing. Participants collected samples once a week for four to six weeks, in order to cover all stages of the menstrual cycle. All samples were stored at −20 °C until assays were performed."


I think I've seen studies comparing the faces of the same women during different cyc;e phases

here's one (restricted access, used my uni account)

Fig 1. Prototypes. Morph of 18 women during ovulation (left) and morph of the same 18 women during the luteal phase of their menstrual cycle (right).

"Thirty-nine heterosexual participants were shown face pairs of which one of them was transformed to the shape of a prototype face of a woman in her luteal cycle phase and the other was transformed to the shape of a prototype face of an ovulatory woman. Participants were asked to choose the face which they perceived as being more attractive (attractiveness task), or the woman with whom they would have better chances to get a date (dating task). In both tasks, the ovulatory female was chosen more often. Testosterone was not predictive for the chosen face; regardless of testosterone level men preferred the ovulatory woman. However testosterone predicted how confident the men were with their choice. Men with lower testosterone levels were more confident with their choice than men with higher testosterone levels."

 

[Hayley]

Interesting, it seems like the biggest difference is in the jaw length and canthal tilt of the eyes. A longer jaw is a masculine trait so the lower oestrogen makes sense there, but eye tilt seems more like an indicator of overall health/good jaw and cheekbone structure (k2 in utero)?

 

[ursidae]

Interesting, it seems like the biggest difference is in the jaw length and canthal tilt of the eyes. A longer jaw is a masculine trait so the lower oestrogen makes sense there, but eye tilt seems more like an indicator of overall health/good jaw and cheekbone structure (k2 in utero)?

Overactive pituitary -high GH during puberty is my guess. And adrenal hyperactivity (high DHEA-S) as haidut said. A stressful and rapid puberty, with pituitary/adrenals overcompensating for low thyroid. Saw another study where a composite of faces of females with small feet was found more attractive than the faces of females with large feet

The major difference between the eyes is spacing and palpebral fissure length. I think the face on the right also has a slightly more forward head posture, contributing to the canthal tilt difference. The ears sit lower on the face, greater nostril show, chin is angled appearing even taller etc. Females with low reproductive hormones likely have poorer posture. Face on the right is also more asymmetrical, with the right eye having a more negative tilt than the left. I think canthal tilt is mostly race and perhaps cortisol levels. I ran several phenotypes through a face recognition software and sinid (east asian) resembled the right face more closely than mediterranid and armenoid female composites.

 

[rayfan1]

Yes , I doubt the method of measurement reflects what's going on in the body.
A similar study-design that uses something like haiduts nail test would be interesting, though.

What is the nail test?