> "When it comes to dating, attraction is a very important factor."

When it comes to dating, attraction is the MAIN and prime factor — for BOTH men and women. Although many people want to deny this, it's the hard truth: almost nobody would date someone they do not find attractive.

It took me a long time to realize this, because most people lie or do not want to appear shallow (women especially).

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Regarding the "When are women in their prime?" question, when it's about attraction the answer is simple: when they're at their most fertile (i.e., usually between 16 and 25). That's not patriarchy or sexism, it's simply evolutionary: we're sexually attracted to people with whom we could have the healthiest children possible.

That doesn't mean that at 26 a woman stops being attractive, of course: it means that past her prime, her "power of attraction" will keep getting lower and lower.

Regarding men, their prime is somehow different because it's less about fertility and more about power / wealth.