Women who are ovulating seek a wider variety of things to buy, according to a new study.
Researchers at The University of Texas at San Antonio showed that, for one week every month, the female of the species is more responsive to advertising and deals offered by competing brands.
Here's the science bit: The need for variety during ovulation stems from a natural impulse to consider various types of men as potential mates and future baby daddies. Previous studies have shown that women tend to be attracted to manly, rebellious men while they are at their most fertile, something scientists refer to as psychological distortion.
Texas University's Professor Kristina Durante, who led the study of 553 women between the ages of 18 and 40, said: "Just like a fisherman casting a wide net, ovulating women seek to cast a wide net into the dating pool and expand the number of potential suitors they have to choose from.
"This desire for variety in men at ovulation triggers a variety-seeking mindset that carries over into desire for variety in products.
"From candy bars to cosmetics, ovulating women chose many different options - not just the same product or brand again and again,"
Interestingly, the study revealed that this craving for variety disappeared when the women were asked to imagine themselves in a loving relationship with a desirable partner, or when married women were asked to put on their wedding rings.
