Women's "cooing over babies" is hardwired in their hormones

London, Jan 22 (ANI): The never-ending maternal question - why are woman more likely than men to coo over babies - has finally been answered, claim boffins, who credit hormones for the 'loving' tendency.

The study by St Andrews University researchers, who used computer images, found that women are able to determine a "cute" baby instinctively by its chubby cheeks, large forehead, big round eyes and button nose, reports the Sun.

Men, however, struggle to pick out the cutest baby from a selection of infant pictures.

The researchers say "cuteness sensitivity" is influenced by female reproductive hormones.

Dr Reiner Sprengelmeyer, of the university's school of psychology, said: "We found that young women between 19-26 and 45-51 years were more sensitive to differences in infant cuteness than men aged 19-26 and 53-60 years.

"Because average age at menopause is 51 years in the UK, these findings suggest the possible involvement of reproductive hormones in cuteness sensitivity." (ANI)