That “opposites attract” is a myth. Scientific studies have shown that in order to start a stable relationship, the attractiveness of the unknown, which does play an important role in passionate encounters, gives way to the security conveyed by the affinity of characters. This theory goes beyond the merely psychological, since the resemblance between the members of the couple even reaches the molecular level. According to surprising work carried out by the University of Colorado (USA), people tend to choose romantic partners who have DNA similar to theirs .
Previous research had already shown that individuals are prone to mating with others of identical characteristics in aspects such as religion, age, race, income, body type and education. Although many of these qualities are phenotypic traits, that is, they are linked (in part) to DNA, this is the first time that a direct influence of our genetic material has been corroborated in the selection of a life partner.
To obtain this conclusion, the scientists examined the genetic sequence of 825 American pairs, especially single nucleotide polymorphisms, since they are areas that commonly differ between humans, accounting for 90 percent of all genomic variations. The results showed that there was a greater similarity between the DNA of the loved ones than between this and that of the rest of the individuals in the sample . The researchers also compared the magnitude of genetic similarity with the magnitude of a widely studied phenomenon, that of educational similarity. In this sense, they observed that the preference for a genetically similar boyfriend was three times lower than the preference for reasons of studies.
This finding lays the foundations for future research on a possible genetic similarity also between friends and highlights once again the influence of chemistry in romantic love.
