Length of your fingers could explain high alcohol consumption, according to new study

A new study has found a mind-boggling correlation between the length of your fingers and alcohol consumption.

I know, that sounds like a completely made up sentence... but it's true.

A research team at Swansea University said they have found evidence that sex hormones, such as testosterone and oestrogen, affect the length of your 2nd [index] and 4th [ring] fingers.

Having one finger longer than the other might be a sign of your alcohol consumption (Getty Stock Images)

And depending on how long your ring finger is compared to your index finger, it could mean you are prone to drinking a lot more.

By using a sample size of 258 participants – 169 of them female – they found that consumption rates varied between the sexes.

Typically, men showed higher alcohol consumption and higher mortality from alcohol abuse, in comparison to women.

But to get to this conclusion, it was determined that the those who are exposed to more oestrogen in the womb tend to have second digits longer than their ring fingers.

The study took a close look at the index finger and the ring finger (Getty Stock Images)

While those who are generally exposed to more testosterone are likely to have ring fingers longer than their second digits.

So if your ring finger is longer than your index finger, the chances are that you were exposed to more testosterone when you were in your mother's womb and are more likely to over-consume.

As mental as it sounds, Professor John Manning, of Swansea’s Applied Sports, Technology, Exercise and Medicine (A-STEM) research team, explained: “Alcohol consumption is a major social and economic problem.

“Therefore, it is important to understand why alcohol use shows considerable differences across individuals.

“A pattern like this suggests an involvement of sex hormones, such as testosterone and oestrogen.

The length of your ring finger might indicate how much oestrogen you were born with (Getty Stock Images)

“Digit ratio (2D:4D: the relative lengths of the 2nd [index] and 4th [ring] fingers) is thought to be an index of early testosterone (long 4th digit) and oestrogen (long 2nd digit).

“It is known that alcohol-dependent patients have very long 4th digits relative to their 2nd digits, suggesting high testosterone relative to oestrogen exposure before birth.

“As expected, the associations were stronger for men than women.”

After studying all 258 participants, it was concluded in the study that 'alcohol consumption was negatively related to 2D:4D, suggesting high prenatal testosterone and low prenatal oestrogen are linked to its consumption'.

"Correlations varied in strength from small to large with the strongest found for right 2D:4D and for males," it added.

"Positive relationships between body size and alcohol were small to moderate, confined to males, and were not independent of digit ratios.

"Prenatal androgenisation may influence alcohol drinking patterns in non-clinical individuals."

'Is Alcohol Consumption Pattern Dependent on Prenatal Sex-Steroids? A Digit Ratio (2D:4D) Study Among University Students' is available for download on the Wiley Online Library

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