There’s something to be said about an attractive smile, and most people you talk with about someone’s attractiveness will probably say something about their smile. But what, exactly, makes a smile attractive? The correlation between malocclusion and dating prospects was studied by Khela et al. (2020) in order to see if misaligned teeth played a role in someone’s interest in asking that person out.
Method
In order to do this, participants were given an envelope with a random picture of a man or a woman inside. These pictures showed one of three types of smiles: aligned teeth (post-orthodontic treatment), crowded teeth (pre-orthodontic treatment), and missing teeth (pre-orthodontic treatment). Each participant rated the photo of their subject according to attractiveness, intelligence level, happiness, nervousness, and how much interest the participant had in dating the person portrayed in the photo.
Results
The results showed positive statistical significance relating to aligned teeth in regards to attractiveness, intelligence, and the likelihood of dating. Attractiveness was also “the most significant predictor in relation to likelihood of dating (P < 0.001).”
Conclusion
As you might have suspected, Khela et al. stated that “malocclusion did influence dating prospects.” Likewise, those with aligned teeth were rated higher in regards to “intelligence, attractiveness, and likelihood of dating, when compared with images of malocclusions.”
Malocclusion Treatment
According to the American Association of Orthodontists, “malocclusion” is Latin for “bad bite.” In orthodontics, malocclusion refers to the way teeth do not fit together as they should. There are a few methods to treat malocclusion, including braces, clear aligners (such as Invisalign), surgery, or removing teeth to correct overcrowding, to name a few.
Many cases can be fixed by simple orthodontic treatment, so we encourage you to visit us at Appalachian Orthodontics of Lynchburg for a complimentary consultation. Dr. Elena Black will take a look at your smile and determine the best method to give you the smile you really want. We look forward to seeing you!
References
Khela, S., Newton, J. T., & Jeremiah, H. G. (2020). The effect of malocclusion on dating prospects. Journal of Orthodontics, 47(1), 30–37. https://doi.org/10.1177/1465312519888926