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Refined Carbs Make Us Less Attractive Within Hours, Study Says
Published Mar 06, 2024

It's no secret that our diet can affect how we look. But this extends far beyond the scales.

Refined carbohydrates—carbs that have been highly processed in ways that typically remove much of their nutritional value—account for roughly 42 percent of our daily calorie consumption in the U.S., according to data from the American Medical Association. High-quality whole grains and fruits, meanwhile, account for only 9 percent.


These "low-quality" carbs have been associated with adverse health effects, such as obesity, Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. But they may also be associated with nonmedical traits, such as perceived attractiveness.

"While the effects of refined carbohydrates on certain hormones are well-documented, it is less known that sex hormones can also be affected," Claire Berticat, a researcher at France's University of Montpellier, said in a statement.

"Certain traits, such as facial attractiveness, are influenced by sex hormones," she continued. "Thus the possibility of uncovering a previously unexplored connection between refined carbohydrate consumption and attractiveness was highly appealing."

In a report published in the online journal PLOS One, Berticat and her colleagues studied 104 male and female adults. Participants were given either a high-glycemic breakfast—rich in refined carbohydrates known to boost blood sugar levels—or a low-glycemic breakfast—rich in non-refined whole grains and protein.

The participants were asked to fill out a questionnaire to evaluate their typical dietary habits to understand how often they usually ate refined carbs (i.e., their "chronic" consumption).

"By conducting controlled experiments where participants consumed high or low glycemic breakfasts, we aimed to isolate the immediate effects of refined carbohydrate consumption," Berticat said. "This approach allowed us to understand both the immediate and chronic effects of refined carbohydrate intake on attractiveness."

Two hours after the dietary intervention, an additional group of volunteers were asked to evaluate the facial attractiveness of the participants.

"We found that consumption of refined carbohydrates, whether immediate or chronic, affects facial attractiveness," Berticat said. These findings were irrespective of the individuals' body mass index.

Abstract
The Western diet has undergone a massive switch since the second half of the 20th century, with the massive increase of the consumption of refined carbohydrate associated with many adverse health effects. The physiological mechanisms linked to this consumption, such as hyperglycaemia and hyperinsulinemia, may impact non medical traits such as facial attractiveness. To explore this issue, the relationship between facial attractiveness and immediate and chronic refined carbohydrate consumption estimated by glycemic load was studied for 104 French subjects. Facial attractiveness was assessed by opposite sex raters using pictures taken two hours after a controlled breakfast. Chronic consumption was assessed considering three high glycemic risk meals: breakfast, afternoon snacking and between-meal snacking. Immediate consumption of a high glycemic breakfast decreased facial attractiveness for men and women while controlling for several control variables, including energy intake. Chronic refined carbohydrate consumption had different effects on attractiveness depending on the meal and/or the sex. Chronic refined carbohydrate consumption, estimated by the glycemic load, during the three studied meals reduced attractiveness, while a high energy intake increased it. Nevertheless, the effect was reversed for men concerning the afternoon snack, for which a high energy intake reduced attractiveness and a high glycemic load increased it. These effects were maintained when potential confounders for facial attractiveness were controlled such as age, age departure from actual age, masculinity/femininity (perceived and measured), BMI, physical activity, parental home ownership, smoking, couple status, hormonal contraceptive use (for women), and facial hairiness (for men). Results were possibly mediated by an increase in age appearance for women and a decrease in perceived masculinity for men. The physiological differences between the three meals studied and the interpretation of the results from an adaptive/maladaptive point of view in relation to our new dietary environment are discussed.