Tonight, on ABC, JoJo Fletcher debuts as the newest The Bachelorette. If you skim through the bachelors who are vying for her heart, you’ll see that the majority of them are flashing their pearly whites for the camera. But some are not – and that makes you wonder, is something wrong with their teeth? What else are they hiding? Have they succumbed to the rumor that women are not as attracted to men who smile often?
Perhaps it’s not that men who smile are unappealing, but rather the type of smile they offer up is what’s not so great. The involuntary act of muscles contracting at the corner of the eyes is known as the “Duchenne smile.” Hence the comment, “smiling with his eyes.” (Former presidential candidate Ted Cruz is often faulted for not having a Duchenne smile and seeming fake and insincere.) But maybe those smiles don’t look real because the men are hardly confident about the smile they’re about to flash. And that’s hardly going to land any bachelor a rose.
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The Roses Go to the Smiling Men
Talk of “chemistry” gets a great deal of screen time on episodes of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, and teeth and a smile play a great deal into that chemical reaction. According to Dr. Helen Fisher, biological anthropologist and chief scientific adviser for Chemistry.com, flirting is a universal language that involves the same sequence of expressions beginning with, you guessed it, smiling at the object of your attention.
But if the great reveal of those teeth behind your lips is hardly impressive, or if you barely open your mouth wide enough to show those less-than-perfect teeth and your smile doesn’t meet your eyes, it’s likely that’s where the attraction will fall flat. So keep your eye out for Duchenne smiles as The Bachelorette meets her suitors. See if she is drawn to the men who are less likely to reveal their teeth. Or if the men who don’t smile very often make it to the second episode.
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The Smile as an Aphrodisiac
The Oral Health Foundation conducted research in honor of National Smile Month and report that messages of the face – a smile in particular – provide commentary and illustration about verbal communications, especially when it comes to courting a potential mate.
They also found that while good oral health can be an attractive quality (56 percent love a good smile), poor oral health is a major turnoff. Forty percent of people are grossed out by food stuck between the teeth, 24 percent shun bad breath, 21 percent turn away from stained teeth, and 16 percent just say no to the folks who neglect to brush twice a day. And men, apparently, have the worst oral health habits (76 percent) according to those surveyed. So it doesn’t matter how nice your suit, how lovely the bouquet of flowers, how unique an entrance – without clean teeth, JoJo isn’t going to be impressed.
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A True Smile Is the Path to Love
Conviction, kindness, and a good, healthy smile is what will bring the bachelors to the top of the pack. So the guy who wants to get the first impression rose from JoJo tonight? He’s the one who’s smiling and drawing her in with a grin that genuinely reaches his eyes. And whether he came by that smile naturally or invested in a smile makeover matters not – it’s all about how far the smile now takes him. And it could get him all the way to the finish line and an engagement with the lady of the hour.
Ready to find your lucky lady? You don’t need reality TV to make it happen, but you might need a brand new smile. Make an appointment with Manhattan cosmetic dentist Dr. Michael J. Wei to learn more about the smile makeover solutions that are right for you.
