Duchenne Smile – Why Smiling With Your Eyes Matter

Can a smile tell about how a person is feeling? This is a topic of debate. Some believe that looking at facial expressions, eyes, and smiles can help us understand how a person feels, while others think just the opposite because people fake smiles and expressions.

If you see someone with the same expression at a wedding and a funeral, but the emotions are different, what will you make of it?

Due to this and many other scenarios, it becomes essential to understand what a smile can tell. 

What is Duchenne smile?

Although not as popular as Monalisa’s or Better Davis’s eyes, a French anatomist, the Duchenne smile named after Guillaume Duchenne de Boulogne is gaining attention. The anatomist focused on smiles, studied different emotional expressions, and was able to identify the facial movements that make this smile different from other types of smiles.

It is a smile that reaches your eyes, making the corners wrinkle. Most of us relate this to the most authentic expression of happiness, but is it actually what it looks like? Researchers have been trying to study this because the Lucent smile is Aman, one of the most influential human expressions.

We all know the power of a smile. The minute we see a laughing video of a baby on YouTube. Eventually, we started to love. We laugh when we see somebody laughing because it inspires us, elevates the moon, and makes us laugh.

But it’s fake. Also, can they be non-authentic? Yes, the emotion you feel seeing a person smiling may not be the same as the emotion the person is feeling. 

What makes the Duchenne smile special?

Unlike other smiles, in which the zygomatic major muscles are used that stays around your lips, the Duchenne smile uses both the zygomatic and the orbicularis oculi muscles.

A fake smile cannot reach the eyes because the muscles around the eyes are not engaged, whereas in the Duchenne smile, all these muscles are engaged, and hence, it is called the smile of enjoyment.

Why does a Duchenne smile matter?

Smiles can be genuine or fake. The ones derived from positive emotions are felt, whereas those with negative emotions attached or fixed miles are not. Sometimes, fake smiles can make a person feel happy, but there is often a lack of emotions.

Also, there are no happy eyes in a fake smile; they are forced, and individuals attempt to smile just to be polite or cordial. To enjoy the benefits of a smile, one should feel it. 

Numerous mental health benefits impact the mode of social interactions, increase empathy, relax a person, make them think positively, and spend time with people in a more playful manner.

When a person smiles truly the feeling of happiness fails within the body. There is an instant dopamine release that makes the person smile naturally. 

Trust, authenticity, and attractiveness automatically come with a Duchenne smile. The level of empathy increases the relaxation of muscles. Alongside these benefits, Duchenne Smile also helps individuals enjoy life better.

Mental Health Benefits of Duchenne Smile

1. Improves mood

A smile can change a place’s environment, making it lovely or dull. Different studies on facial feedback say a lot about smiles and a person’s emotional state. In the case of the Duchenne smile, people who smile with their eyes can bring joy to everyone. 

2. Help connect

Smiling faces are easy to connect with. When a person smiles at you, you automatically get attracted and try to respond to what they say. This is why the Duchenne smile is considered contagious. Since many facial expressions are mixed with a smile, it makes the other day and day film an instant connection with the other person. Also, it is hell to interact socially. 

3. Changes bodies stress response

Smiles are addictive, and the facial muscles used when you smile also help reduce the body’s stress response. In 2012, a group of researchers conducted an experiment asking certain participants to keep smiling during stressful phases, and the others were given a chopstick to hold in their teeth that would appear like a Duchenne smile.

The study concluded that the people who smile during stressful situations had low stress, whereas people with Duchenne smiles had calmer hearts. This made the researchers realize that a positive facial expression can bring physiological and psychological benefits. 

4. Make others see you positively

When a person smiles with eyes and mouth, others feel a sense of trust and sincerity. This helps people connect more with people who smile. A smile is persuasive and helps to receive positive feedback.

How do you practice a genuine smile?

If you are attracted to Duchenne’s smile and wonder if you can smile the same way, the good news is that you can with a little bit of practice. 

To create a Duchenne smile, think of a happy memory. You can visualize your loved one or a happy moment of your life that always brings a smile. Now, look into a mirror and see how your facial muscles move when you smile, lifting the skin around your lips, cheek, and eye muscles.

When you do so, you will see that your cheeks are left, and you have wrinkles around your eyes. What we call it when you practice sets, you will be able to have a genuine-looking smile in which your muscles will be used the more you practice, the better you will become at using it in the future to attract people and improve your social and personal relationships.

Duchenne smile is a positive or negative

The Duchenne smile signals enjoyment. It occurs when the facial muscles lift the corners of your mouth, your cheeks are lifted, and your eyes have wrinkles at the corners. This smile influences the Lord of People and makes them instantly smile. It is trustworthy, and this is a way to show a positive response. Not only that, it even builds connections.

However, as people are now learning to fake a smile, many influences show Duchenne smiling with their eyes and mouth open, making it challenging to understand whether it is a smile or an actual one. One day, when you see somebody smiling, try to feel the emotion connected with it. You will know whether it is genuine or somebody intentionally faking the Duchenne smile.