Is genetic matchmaking the future of love?
Wish you could be loved for who you are? Thanks to modern science, that may be possible.
Scientists have pinpointed three pairs of genes that may be able to gauge satisfaction in various aspects of a relationship. The gene pairs, referred to as the Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC), can predict the health of a couples’ children, sexual satisfaction and even whether someone will find a mate’s bodily scent appealing.
Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? Just swab the inside of your mouth, send it off to a lab and you can connect with your soul mate. Before we know it, Patti Stanger may be replaced in the matchmaking business by a lab!
But critics warn not to jump the gun…
Although MHC sharing can determine whether someone will find someone else’s body odor appealing or repulsive, it may not be as effective at predicting some of the smaller details that are essential to a relationship.
“I won’t deny the fascinating pattern of this research,” professor Lionel Tiger said in a recent article. “But in real life, women may fall for the tall, dark stranger on a ship because he smells good — and then return to Mr. Geek back home.”
Even if you’re content with finding a sweet-smelling partner, the logistics of finding a pair may be more complicated. Currently, few matchmaking companies offer MHC services. One such service, scientificmatch.com, is available to those in the Boston/Providence region for a lifetime fee of $2,000 with the promise of weeding out 70 to 80 percent of bad matches.
But, even if you are willing to lay down such a big chunk of change, the chance that a potential match would also be willing to do the same is less than guaranteed.
Although the future of MHC and other kinds of genetic-compatibility tests is interesting to consider, for now, it seems the better, cheaper way to find your soul mate is to get just out there and meet people.
