Obrochta Weronika M, Klimek Magdalena, Bartecka Paula, Klaś Katarzyna, Marcinkowska Urszula M
Department of Environmental Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow, Poland.
Jagiellonian University Medical College, Doctoral School of Medical and Health Sciences, Krakow, Poland.
PLoS One. 2025 Aug 25;20(8):e0318138. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0318138. eCollection 2025.
There is a widespread assumption that facial features could act as a biomarker of human developmental stability and thus provide an important cue to an individual's physical and mental health status. However, research to date shows mixed support for this assumption. This is the first review that explores the association between various aspects of health and facial features, namely symmetry, averageness, and sexual dimorphism in adults. We searched electronic databases including Web of Science, MEDLINE PubMed, Scopus, and Embase. We followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) guidelines for reporting of our results. Of the 702 screened articles, 21 were eligible for inclusion. Studies presented various relationships between facial features and cardiovascular health; immunocompetence; oxidative stress level; cortisol level; reproductive health; cognitive health, and general physical health. This review results in an inconclusive answer to the question of whether facial features can serve as honest indicators of health. The results warrant caution when utilizing facial features as a biomarker of health status and biological condition of an individual. Protocol: Open Science Framework, https://osf.io/dv9pu/.
人们普遍认为面部特征可以作为人类发育稳定性的生物标志物，从而为个体的身心健康状况提供重要线索。然而，迄今为止的研究对这一假设的支持不一。这是第一篇探讨成年人健康的各个方面与面部特征之间关联的综述，这些面部特征包括对称性、普通性和两性异形。我们检索了包括科学网、MEDLINE PubMed、Scopus和Embase在内的电子数据库。我们遵循系统评价和Meta分析扩展的首选报告项目（PRISMA-ScR）指南来报告我们的结果。在筛选的702篇文章中，有21篇符合纳入标准。研究呈现了面部特征与心血管健康、免疫能力、氧化应激水平、皮质醇水平、生殖健康、认知健康和一般身体健康之间的各种关系。这篇综述对于面部特征是否可以作为健康的可靠指标这一问题给出了不确定的答案。在将面部特征用作个体健康状况和生物学状况的生物标志物时，这些结果值得谨慎对待。方案：开放科学框架，https://osf.io/dv9pu/ 。
