Fake Smiles Are Unhealthy

Someone once said (and it may just have been that lip-syncing ‘80s band Milli Vanilli) that you should “fake it ‘til you make it”.

However, if recent research is anything to go by, you may want to reconsider this advice when it comes to smiling.

That’s because, according to researchers at Penn State and the University of Buffalo, in the USA, fake smiling actually leads to alcoholism.

After monitoring the drinking habits of 1,592 respondents who work in public service outlets such as restaurants, hospitals and schools, the researchers found that more employees had to fake a smile or exaggerate positive emotions.

Penn State Professor of psychology, Alicia Grandley, hypothesised that the focus group were more likely to consume greater amounts of alcohol once they clocked out of work.

Speaking to ABC News 4 Grandley said: “Faking and suppressing emotions with customers was related to drinking beyond the stress of the job or feeling negative.”

“It wasn’t just feeling bad that makes them reach for a drink. Instead, the more they have to control negative emotions at work, the less they are able to control their alcohol intake after work.”

So, unless you want to become a raging alcoholic, it’s best you avoid faking your smile.

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