According to the German Society of Ophthalmology, which has collated different scientific studies on the phenomenon, women shed tears on average between 30 and 64 times a year whereas men cry just six to 17 times during the same period.

Men tend to cry for between two and four minutes, but for women, sessions last around six minutes. And weeping turns into full-blown sobbing for women in 65 per cent of cases, compared to just six per cent for males.