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You may say your heart is true, but the sound of your voice may be telling a different story. New research suggests the pitch of your voice may be ringing alarm bells that you're likely to cheat on a potential mate.

When choosing a partner, women believe the lower the man's voice, the higher the risk he'll be unfaithful. And men think a woman with a higher voice is more likely to stray, according to research out of McMaster University.

"In terms of sexual strategy, we found that men and women will use voice pitch as a warning sign of future betrayal. So the more attractive the voice - a higher pitch for women and lower pitch for men - the more likely the chances he or she will cheat," said lead author Jillian O'Connor, a graduate student in the Department of Psychology, Neuroscience and Behaviour, in a press release.

Participants in the study were asked to listen to two versions of recorded clips from a male voice and a female voice, which were electronically manipulated to be both higher and lower in pitch, according to the release. They were then asked which one, from each pair, was more likely to cheat sexually.

Researchers think that the hormones associated with adulterous behaviour are the middleman: Men with higher testosterone have lower voices and women with higher estrogen have higher pitched voices.

"Overall, the hypothesis makes a lot of sense since men with deeper voices and more testosterone might be more likely to engage in (extramarital) relationships," biological anthropologist David Puts of Penn State told USA Today. He's been been part of studies suggesting men with more "masculine" voices report more sexual partners.

Does this study sound right to you?



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