Handsome men have the best sperm, a new study reveals. The researchers showed that men with the healthiest, fastest sperm were rated as the most facially attractive by women.

The characteristics of a person’s face have long been regarded as an indicator of health. But this is the first direct evidence to suggest a man’s reproductive quality correlates with his facial characteristics, say the authors.

Maria Sancho-Navarro, a team member at the University of Valencia, Spain, said that symmetrical faces were rated as more attractive by the women. And other studies have shown that people with more symmetrical features are less likely to suffer ill health.

The researcher team examined 66 male students from Valencia. They showed frontal and side photos of the men’s faces to 66 women, who rated their attractiveness. The men’s semen quality was measured according to World Health Organization guidelines.


Motility and morphology

In the second part of the study, 12 men from the good, normal and bad semen groups were selected and their photos rated by two independent sets of women.

The women’s perception of a man’s good looks corresponded to better sperm motility and morphology in both groups. However, there was no relationship between attractiveness and sperm concentration.

Although other factors like social and economic status influence women’s final choice of a partner, say the researchers, they do seek attractive partners who are healthy and able to father children.

“Our study has shown that women are able to recognise reproductively fit males on the basis of their facial appearance alone,” they conclude.

A separate study by UK researchers has revealed that women with the most alluring voices have the most attractive faces. Sarah Collins and Caroline Missing, at the University of Nottingham, played recordings of 30 young women to men who later saw their photos. The men judged women with attractive voices as the best looking, reveals the study published in the latest Animal Behaviour.

Journal reference: Evolution and Human Behavior (vol 24, p 199)