25+ Facts and Statistics About Love to Brighten Up Your Day

Love is a miraculous feeling, and it can be proven. The facts about love presented in this article are based on extensive research and numerous studies that have been done on the subject. Even though we all know that being in love is one of the most powerful human conditions, some of the facts and stats listed here might come as a surprise! After all, it turns out love is a truly complex wonder of nature. Let’s get started!

Fascinating Facts About Love

• It only takes four minutes to decide whether or not you like someone. (Mind Body Green)
• Only one-fifth of a second is needed for people to fall in love. (Mind Body Green)
• Men fall in love faster than women. (Glamour)
• Love truly is a drug – it’s just as addicting as cocaine! (The Guardian)
• Facts about relationships reveal that kissing is more important for a happy relationship than sex. (Healthline)
• Women are more attracted to men with a strong sense of humour – they associate this trait with honesty and intelligence. (Healthline)
• Men that kiss their partners in the morning can live up to five years longer than those that don’t. (Psychology Today)
• Scientific facts about love reveal that there are people that are unable to feel romantic love. (Healthline)
• Speed dating was first created in 1999 by a Jewish rabbi – the concept is based on Jewish chaperoned gatherings. (Original Dating)

The History of Love

Love is one of the oldest feelings that’s been described, so we decided to begin with a few interesting facts about the historical development of the concept as we know it today.

#1 The word ‘love’ finds its origins in Sanskrit

(Kidadl)

The word ‘love’ comes from the Sanskrit word ‘lubhyati’, which means ‘he desires’. An equivalent of the word and the concept of love appears across all ancient cultures.

#2 The vein of love is the reason we wear an engagement ring on the fourth finger of our left hand

(FearlessSoul)

Traditionally, an engagement ring is worn on the fourth finger of the left hand – this is one of the more mysterious love facts. It is believed that this practice was adopted in Western civilization because the Ancient Greeks believed that the ‘vein of love’ or the ‘vena amoris’ ran from the finger on the left hand directly into the heart.

#3 The heart as a symbol was first used to depict love in 1250

(Thought Catalog)

The heart shape is a commonly accepted symbol of love, even though it doesn’t resemble the physiological shape of the human heart. So, why is the heart associated with love? The heart, as an organ, has been associated with love since the conception of all known civilizations, but it didn’t have the shape it has today. The heart symbol was first used to denote love in 1250 – before that, it was used to depict foliage.

#4 Making love potions used to be common

(Thought Catalog)

One of the interesting facts about love is that people used to believe that a potion could make a person fall in love with them! Usually, these potions contained human sweat, which was also a key ingredient in perfumes that were used to attract the opposite sex.

The Chemistry Behind Love

Many people believe that loving someone is merely a psychological process, but that’s not the case. When people fall in love, the body responds with a physical reaction that has been thoroughly analyzed; this means that we can further understand why some things considered weird happen.

#5 The hormone responsible for love is oxytocin

(Kidadl)

Facts indicate that when people embrace their partner, oxytocin is released from the central nervous system – this hormone causes feelings of trust and affection to increase, which is why it’s often been called the love hormone. Studies have shown that couples that spend more time hugging have higher levels of mutual trust, and experience more stress relief caused by the close presence of their partner.

#6 Phenylethylamine, or the ‘love drug’, can also be found in chocolate

(TheActiveTimes)

The science behind love reveals that when people are in love, the brain releases phenylethylamine into the bloodstream, also known as the ‘love drug’. This is exactly what makes people feel crazy in love – and it can also be found in chocolate! It comes as no surprise that people can’t get enough of love – or sweet treats.

#7 Butterflies in your stomach are caused by adrenaline in your body

(Bored Panda)

Anyone that’s ever been in love knows that strange feeling of butterflies fluttering around your stomach. Even though this may seem like a figment of the imagination, facts about relationships reveal that there’s a perfectly reasonable explanation behind it – butterflies are a stress response caused by the excessive amount of adrenaline your body produces when you see the object of your affection. This is one of the ways you can tell you’re in love!

#8 Being in love and having OCD display some of the same symptoms

(Vocal Media Humans)

One of the weird but true facts about love is that it causes serotonin levels to drop. Once these levels drop, infatuation starts to become more pronounced; this can lead to obsessive behaviour. When this happens, people can display symptoms identical to those with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD).

#9 Love and lust are both caused by hormones

(2date4love)

Love and lust are two completely different things, but they are often mixed up. Relationship facts reveal that whenever we do things that feel good, whether it’s simply spending time without a boyfriend or girlfriend or having sex with them, dopamine is released in the body. This hormone is associated with attraction and it can easily confuse our emotions – people are often unsure if they’re in love or merely lusting after their partners.

The Psychology of Love

As we’ve seen so far, the body shows the physical signs of being in love, but that doesn’t mean that the psyche doesn’t react as well. The psychology of love has been heavily discussed in scientific circles and psychologists have come to some fascinating conclusions.

#10 Broken heart syndrome is a diagnosed condition with people suffering from heartbreak

(FearlessSoul)

When people fall in love they feel as if though it will last forever – but how long does love last? Well, some love stories last forever, but others end in heartbreak after several months, years, or even decades. After a breakup, people complain of experiencing physical pain and this has been scientifically backed up – the phenomenon is referred to as broken heart syndrome. Painful emotional experiences result in physical pain in people’s hearts and the symptoms are similar to those of a heart attack.

#11 The heart is not the organ of love, the brain is

(Essence)

Even though love is associated with your heart, most recent studies show that love originates in the brain. Love statistics provided by researchers at University College London and Rutgers University show that romance is activated in the brain – more specifically in the part of the brain that’s responsible for risk and reward, while the part that deals with judgment and decision making is deactivated.

#12 Love decreases physical pain

(FearlessSoul)

Merely looking at a photograph of your loved one can lower pain levels when people experience intense emotional or physical trauma. If you can have the comfort of their company, that’s even better.

#13 Being in love isn’t forever

(BusinessInsider)

When you take a look at facts about falling in love, you may be surprised to learn that the ‘being in love period’ lasts approximately one year. A 2005 study showed that one year after entering romantic relationships, a chemical known as the ‘nerve growth factor’ starts to decrease. This chemical is responsible for intense romantic feelings, but once it starts to decrease the romantic love stage passes over into the committed love stage.

#14 Love makes you a better person

(2date4love)

You may wonder what is love all about in a relationship, and might be surprised when you learn the answer. Being in a committed monogamous relationship makes you become a better person, positively influences your personality development, and decreases levels of neurosis in both partners.

#15 Kindness is the key to the heart

(FearlessSoul)

Psychology facts about love prove that people are more attracted to potential partners who display kindness towards other people – being a good person pays off after all!

Science Says It All

If you thought that love isn’t synonymous with hard science, you’re mistaken. Science has managed to arrive at some conclusions about love, and they’re quite fascinating.

#16 Having a crush is a short-term condition – love is what you experience in the long run

(Good MenProject)

Scientific studies have proven a crush lasts up to 4 months. If you’re still having strong feelings about your partner after the four-month mark, it means that you’re in love with them!

#17 Happiness is contagious

(Vocal Media Humans)

One of the interesting facts about life and love is that happiness is a contagious feeling – if your partner is a happy person with a positive outlook on life, it might be difficult for you to leave them.

#18 You are attracted to people with similar genes

(Vocal Media Humans)

They say opposites attract, but this is not always true! Scientists have proven that interpersonal relationships between people with similar DNA are more common, and usually more successful. Please note that this doesn’t indicate that two people are related; they are just alike.

#19 Equally attractive people do well together

(Bored Panda)

One of the true facts about love is that people who have different levels of attractiveness probably won’t make it as a couple. People subconsciously look for a partner that looks similar to them and has approximately the same level of attraction – this has been proven by the Matching Hypothesis.

#20 Falling in love takes longer for women

(GoodMenProject)

It is a common belief that women fall in love more quickly, but in reality, do men fall in love faster? Yes! Men are the first ones to fall in love with their partner – and they’re more likely to say it first too.

#21 Birth control alters your taste in men

(Relationship Rules)

If you’re in a relationship and want to protect yourself from unwanted pregnancy, you’ll probably turn to birth control pills. You may find that your partner isn’t as attractive to you as he once was – kinda weird, right? Well, there’s a scientific explanation for this: birth control pills are hormonal, so it’s expected that there might be some side effects. One unwanted effect of birth control is that it may alter your perception of what kind of partner you want.

#22 Marriage is beneficial for your health

(Fox News)

Marriage can seem like a terrifying lifelong commitment, but is it? Science says no – if you look at how often do married couples make love statistics, you’ll see that they generally have active sex lives, which is good for overall health. Studies have shown married men have stronger skeletons than unmarried ones – marriage somehow strengthens the bone structure!

These facts reveal that married men are more likely to overcome cancer and other diseases, and the risk factor for other diseases is significantly lower – this is possibly due to the support they get from their spouse. So if you were hesitant about that wedding, here’s an additional reason for you to go for it.

#23 The chances of finding love without trying are very small

(Kidadl)

There have been numerous studies that have tried to determine what are your chances of finding love on any given day – and the numbers aren’t too encouraging. If you leave it all to chance, the probability of finding an emotional attachment is 1 in 562, according to love statistics and facts. In case you were already despairing about finding love, there’s no cause for worry – you can improve your odds by going out more frequently or signing up for a dating app!

#24 Divorce runs in the family

(Vocal Media Humans)

Although we all like to believe differently, love ending in divorce is common. These statistics on relationships lasting show that divorce is more likely to happen between people whose parents were divorced – divorce stats show that 43% of children of divorced parents usually end up divorcing themselves; this happening around the ten-year mark is not uncommon.

Love Is Weird

Even though we’ve looked at love from all different angles and described numerous scientific explanations associated, there’s still some weird stuff going on!

#25 Love alters your sense of taste

(Medium)

When you’re in love, your food tastes differently – or is it all in your head? These fun facts about love prove that it’s not just you: studies have shown that when people think about the bliss of love, they rate foods as sweeter than those who were thinking about jealousy. Even water tastes sweeter when you’re in love!

#26 Being in love affects your ability to focus

(Medium)

Feeling like you’re losing the ability to focus? You might be in love! Whether it was love at first sight or you’re already in a committed, monogamous relationship, you can easily stray off track. Statistics about falling in love reveal that people who were infatuated with another person had more trouble focusing on tasks; their performance lacks due to the fact they had something else on their mind: their loved one.

#27 Rom-coms are beneficial to romantic relationships

(Fox News)

Romantic comedy movies often pose the question ‘does everyone find love’? In most films, they do. That being said, it could be beneficial if you watch romantic movies with your spouse, according to a study done at Binghamton University. Couples that watch romance movies together have lower divorce rates – but this activity must take place at home, where couples have the opportunity to discuss the work and how it relates to them.

#28 Falling in love depends on when and where you are in life

(Thought Catalog)

You may have heard people say that timing is everything… and it is. Facts about love at first sight reveal that people merely looking for an adventure were more likely to fall in love. Other factors that entice people to form an emotional attachment to someone are loneliness, transitioning to a new stage of life, being far from home, or feeling ready to take the next step in life.

#29 Intuition plays a large role in the choice of a potential partner

(Relationship Rules)

They say when you know, you know – and that’s not far from the truth. When you meet someone new, your intuition tells you whether or not the relationship will work out. An experiment showed that couples who gave initial predictions of their relationship were right most of the time!

#30 It’s been proven that the main source of happiness in life is love

(Vocal Media Humans)

Finally, romantic facts reveal that love is, in fact, all there is. A Harvard study conducted over 75 years revealed that love is all that matters in long-term relationships. Happiness and pleasure in life are derived from love, or the search for love.

Wrap Up

There are many intriguing facts about love which prove that it truly is a miraculous feeling. Many aspects of love have been explained by science and psychology, and there have been numerous studies done on the subject of love. Even though many things can be explained, love is still the biggest mystery in the world.