11 Interesting Unknown Facts About Tears

You are watching a sappy romantic movie, or maybe looking at childhood photos or maybe just driving- and suddenly something goes into your eye, tears spring to your eyes. But have you ever paused to think why this happens? Here are some interesting facts about tears:

1. Babies learn to cry differently in different cultures
2. A Dutch researcher discovered that women in wealthier, Western economies cry much more than women in poorer countries where they have fewer rights
3. There are actually three kinds of tears

Basal tears – clean and lubricate your eyes
Reflex tears – which drain when your eyes are irritated by things like onions or pollen
Emotional tears – This one needs no explanation!

4. Research shows that some people are indeed more prone to crying than others!
5. In certain neurological conditions, crying and laughing can happen uncontrollably

Pathological laughing and crying (PLC) can appear as a symptom of a stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, multiple sclerosis, and Lou Gehrig’s disease.

6. There’s a scientific reason behind men’s distaste for women’s tears

Men detect a unique chemical component in the tears women let loose when they’re sad, and it discourages them from feeling sexually aroused, according to a study published in the journal Science. “We conclude that there is a chemosignal in human tears, and at least one of the things the chemosignal does is reduce sexual arousal,” says study author Noam Sobel, a neuroscientist at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel.

7. Tears have 3 layers

The lipid layer (oils)
The aqueous layer (water)
The mucous layer (mucin)

8. Tears have the same composition as saliva

They are made up of proteins, salt and hormones.

9. According to a study conducted in 2011, testosterone and sexual arousal take a dip in men after they smell a woman’s tears
10. Crying might really provide psychological relief

Some researchers suggest that emotional tears contain stress hormones, which the body pushes out during the process of crying. One more theory is that crying also releases feel-good endorphins- the same ones that are released during exercising and laughing.