[2] In addition, the first printed version of the phrase was found in Playboy magazine in January 1987 titled "The Let's Get Practical Fashion Award: To Georgetown for its beer goggles".
[4] First, alcohol enters the bloodstream through the gastrointestinal tract and the amount absorbed varies based on several factors such as genetic makeup, weight, muscle-to-fat ratio, food present and any medical conditions.
[5] Lastly, there are several studies demonstrating that drinking increases risky sexual behavior, the likelihood of having casual partners and less consistent condom use.
One of the first studies on the topic of "beer goggles" was done in 2003 which took 80 heterosexual college students to a bar, served drinks and then showed them pictures of people of the opposite sex.
[1] According to a recent study, findings by Bowdring and Prof Michael Sayette of the University of Pittsburgh showed that although beer goggles might not have appeared as a result of drinking, respondents were more inclined to express an interest in engaging with attractive individuals.
[10] Recent studies outside laboratory settings find that the "beer goggles" effect, a connection between attractiveness perceptions and level of drunkenness, was not found as consistently.
[12] Most of the studies conclude that it is important to recognize many confounding variables such as the amount of alcohol consumed, environment, mindset before drinking, relationship status and sexual arousal that all may play a role in ratings of perceived attractiveness.
[13] In addition, trends are showing that more people from Generation Z are opting not to drink alcohol at all with around a 20% to 28% increase in sober individuals in the last decade in the United States.
[14] Researchers are now studying how this sober curious movement is impacting the dating landscape and whether this "beer goggles" effect will soon be less prevalent.