There’s no need to alter your regular eye wear when going on a date this Valentine’s Day. According to research released by the College of Optometrists*, 64 per cent of people wouldn’t mind whether or not their date was wearing glasses and 26 per cent of respondents said they would find a person wearing glasses on a date attractive or sexy. The research, conducted in UK this month found that glasses are very unlikely to affect your chances of securing a second date, with only 1 per cent of respondents saying that they felt they wouldn’t want to go on another date with a glasses wearer.
These findings will be useful for those looking for love this Valentine’s Day; 23 per cent of single respondents said they would not wear glasses on a first date. However, only eight per cent of single people have said they would find it unattractive if their date showed up wearing glasses. The survey also showed some interesting differences in attitude toward glasses between genders; women are far less likely to include a picture of themselves wearing glasses in a dating profile picture (18 versus 8 per cent), although men are more likely to find glasses wearing attractive (20 versus 15 per cent). Those attempting to pull off the ‘intelligent’ look won’t be helped by wearing glasses though; less than five per cent of survey respondents said they would assume someone was intelligent because they were wearing glasses on a date.
Dr Susan Blakeney, clinical adviser to the College of Optometrists, commented: “It’s great to see such a positive attitude towards wearing glasses, something that may have traditionally been viewed as geeky or unattractive. Our survey showed encouraging opinions from both the young and the old; those in the over 55 category were the least affected by those wearing glasses, with three quarters of those responding saying they wouldn’t mind if their date was wearing specs. And, we’re seeing attitudes changing in younger people; those aged between 16 and 24 most likely to find glasses wearing attractive. Wearing glasses forms a very important part in optimising vision for a huge proportion of people in the UK, so I’m very pleased to see them viewed in this positive way.”
Of course, if you don’t like wearing specs, your optician can advise on the most suitable type of contact lenses for you.
Further survey findings are listed below:
*Research undertaken by Censuswide on behalf of the College of Optometrists. 1000 people were surveyed, including 500 males and 500 females.