AROUND Valentine’s Day, people get frantic: girls eagerly scroll their contacts for the number of that guy they kissed last week and boys start eyeing up potential girls in their seminars; all to find a potential date before the most loved-up day of the year.

Yet, it seems that the search to meet the ‘one’ is in decline – more and more people are opting instead to date more than one person at a time.

According to a BBC investigation, monogamous relationships are now outdated and polygamy could become the new normal.

In a world full of easy-access dating devices, it’s no wonder that exclusive relationships seem to be going out of fashion.

Apps such as Tinder allow even the most loyal boyfriend to gain easy access to new girls with just one swipe of a finger.

On the back of my friend’s persuasion, I tried out the Tinder trend.

And yes, it was just as addictive as everyone said – within a few minutes I had ‘matched’ with a boy only three kilometers away from me and within an hour he was asking to meet up for a drink.

Meeting potential boyfriends has never been so easy – why would you want just one guy when you can have five?

Thinking about it more, the negatives of a monogamous relationship are clear all around us.

We all know that girl who used to be out every night of the week with her girlfriends, but who now lives permanently at her boyfriend’s house and checks his phone on a daily occurrence.

Researchers from the University of New Mexico concluded that girls rely on romantic relationships for their self-identity, leading to depression or even suicidal thoughts if the reality of a boyfriend strays from the ideal.

Girls should be focusing more on their career, friends and social life for self-fulfilment rather than boys, and if throwing away monogamy is the only way to achieve that, then so be it.

Even the celebrities are doing it, with Cameron Diaz theorising last week that ‘having more than one lover is better than trying to stick to one’.

Saying all this, the romantic in me still wins – the thought of two people so in love they wouldn’t even contemplate straying still gets me every time.

The sense of commitment and loyalty that is be created between a married couple is one which cannot be replicated anywhere else.

From my experience, the allusive title ‘friends with benefits’ only leads to jealousy, anger and inevitably losing the ‘friend’ part of the agreement.

Yes, for now it may be fun to play the field, but in 15 years’ time I predict most people will not be singing the same tune they are now.

We should ditch our greediness and yearning for something more and maybe focus on the person that means something to you.

It is true that 72 per cent of students at my uni get married – and I doubt you’re going to meet yours on Tinder.

Thai visiting temple instead of sex

TEENS in Thailand are being urged to visit temples instead of having sex this Valentine’s Day.

Thailand has one of the highest teenage pregnancy rates in South East Asia.

The February 14 celebrations are a popular western import to tourist-friendly Thailand but the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration is worried about teenagers making love.

“If kids really love each other, it’s better for them to go and free birds and fish or go to the temple,” said Pirapong Saicheua, an official of the city authority told the media.

Freeing caged birds is an auspicious Buddhist ritual that believers in Thailand and elsewhere in Asia see as a way of enhancing their merit, or karma.

“Better to put your minds at ease. Don’t obsess over something inappropriate for your age,” Mr Pirapong said.