WASHINGTON – Women prefer men with a ruddy skin tone because it indicates a strong alpha-male with dominant genes, says a new study published in the Journal of Evolutionary Psychology.

Prince Harry’s got it. Former President Bill Clinton, Richard Branson and Brad Pitt all have the ruddy look that scientists say are common to alpha-males with high levels of testosterone

In doing the study, women were asked to change pictures of men’s faces to make them more attractive.

The first thing they did was make their skin tone redder. But not too red. Too much of a good thing ends up being a bad thing

Conversely, women who wear red are often more attractive to men.

WTOP’s Randi Martin contributed to this report. Follow WTOP on Twitter.

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