Don't bother asking her out today! Second Wednesday in December is the worst day of the year for romance because of the cold and the hassle of Christmas shopping 

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Today is the least romantic day of the year, according to new research.

The study suggests the second Wednesday in December - dubbed 'Anti-Valentine's Day' - sees interest in dating down 30 per cent compared to average.

The research found many singletons are disinterested in romance due to the cold (28 per cent) or being too busy Christmas shopping (11 per cent), while 200,000 are too stingy to get together with someone as they'll need to buy them a Christmas gift.

If you are looking for romance, then it would be best not to bother today: a study suggests the second Wednesday in December - dubbed 'Anti-Valentine's Day' - sees interest in dating down 30 per cent compared to average

And one in four singletons (27 per cent) admit going on fewer dates in December, compared to the other months of the year, with six of the 10 least romantic days of the year in the final month.

Dating site eHarmony conducted the study in conjunction with The Future Foundation as part of the 'Lovedex' which measures daily interest in dating on a scale between zero and 100.

It uses three key indicators - daily Google search data for dating terms such as 'dating venues,' social media mentions of these phrases, and traffic to eHarmony itself - to score any given day, with the average day scoring 28.

The second Wednesday in December has an average Lovedex score of 21.2, 30 per cent lower than the average day.

The study shows the most romantic day of the year, perhaps not surpisingly, is Valentine's Day on February 14th with an average Lovedex score of 72.7, followed by New Year's Eve with a score of 52 - the only romantic day of the year to fall in December.

Jemima Wade, of eHarmony, said: 'Although for many the festive season is dedicated to giving, it's important not to forget your own needs this December; whether that means taking some time for yourself or looking for someone to share those cold evenings with.

'No matter how busy you are with parties and Christmas shopping, with our 29 dimensions of compatibility and Compatibility Matching System doing the legwork we'll be able to find you a better match - even on 'Anti-Valentine's Day.''