Just a pretty face? Turns out attractive people have better immune systems, new study says

There may just be more to attractive people than meets the eye.

A new study has found that attractive people have better immune systems, a likely outcome of humans being biologically programmed to seek out a healthier mate.

The new study was on Wednesday published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, an academic journal. For the study, the researchers recruited 79 women and 80 men at the Texas Christian University and asked them to have their photos taken and blood tested.

While photographing the participants from the neck up, the researchers asked them to keep a “neutral facial expression” while the women were not allowed to wear makeup. Each participant also had 85 ml of blood drawn for testing.

The researchers then asked 492 volunteers to rate the participants’ facial attractiveness based on the photographs. The data was then collated and the ratings cross-examined with the blood test results.

The researchers noted during the study that while facial attractiveness was sometimes punctuated by idiosyncrasies, it was often consistent across space and time.

Humans have, throughout recorded history, deemed features such as prominent cheekbones, clear skin, full, red lips, and bright eyes as attractive, the researchers wrote.

They theorised that there might be a correlation between a person’s attractiveness and their immunity level as humans might be biologically programmed to seek healthier mates.

The findings also affirmed their beliefs — the blood samples from the more-attractive participants were found to have higher phagocytosis rates. Phagocytosis is the process by which specific white blood cells ingest foreign particles.

Researchers had previously claimed that phagocytes played a key role in innate immunity by eliminating fungi, bacteria, and malignant cells.

The authors said perceptions of attractiveness might play a more crucial role in guiding the choice of partners who had high-functioning immune systems.