The month of January has become associated with depression, relationship break-ups, attempts to lose weight and give up smoking and of course bills, but a new study suggests it might also be the ideal moment to find love.
According to a survey of 5,000 single people including 1,300 Irish men and women, undertaken by the online dating website Parship.ie, January is bonanza time for budding romances with this Saturday scheduled to be the year's biggest night for first dates.
The survey reveals that single people in Ireland will have gone on 474,000 first dates by the end of January - nearly three times more than in December and twice as many as any other single month of the year.
It discovered that Monday last was the day when singles were most likely to pluck up the courage to ask someone out, but it's Saturday that is scheduled to be the year's biggest night for first dates, with an estimated 94,000 first dates blossoming into new romance by February.
Three out of four survey respondents said they were actively seeking to meet someone this month with 47 per cent of those individuals looking for a committed relationship and 13 per cent for a casual relationship.
"These findings are consistent with previous surveys," said Dr Victoria Luukats, a psychiatrist and so-called dating expert. "The explanation could be down to the post-Christmas malaise, pressure from well-meaning friends and relatives or New Year's resolutions. Perhaps people who have been putting off dating for a while may tell themselves they will make an effort in the New Year."
