Have a romantic meal

Among the traditional gifts for that special someone in your life are chocolate, flowers and cuddly toys, and it's normally all capped off with a fancy meal.

February 14 is among the busiest nights of the year for most restaurants. They'll more than likely put on a special menu, featuring champagne, oysters and strawberries - this depends on how flush you're feeling, of course.

Thanks to the recession, most of us will feel lucky if we get to share a bag of chips on the way home from the cinema.

With that in mind, why not stay in on Valentine's Day?

You'll surely save a few quid, which isn't exactly the sprit of romance, admittedly, but you might also have a better meal, and you get feel free to get as, er, intimate as you like as the night goes on without fear of fellow diners complaining.

As already mentioned, oysters, champagne and strawberries go hand in hand with Valentine's Day, they're all tried-and-tested aphrodisiacs, proven to help us shake off our inhibitions.

What about Mexican food laced with chillies?

The small, fiery peppers might not be at the top of the list of foods you'd want to eat before a night of passion, but did you know they're an effective aphrodisiac?

Red chillies are more potent than their green brethren, but both will increase your heart rate and your circulation giving an exciting, if only temporary, high.