11 things you didn’t know kissing does to you

~Vanguard Nigeria. Friday, September 2, 2016. 

We all enjoy a really good kiss, but did you know that locking lips with someone makes you live longer, helps prevent tooth decay and burns calories?

Apart from the obvious bacteria swapping and reducing stress levels, it turns out there is plenty more to know about a good snog with your partner, lover, or whoever else you happen to be swapping saliva with.

Author David Wolfe has produced a video on the 11 thinks you never knew about kissing, and these are the surprising facts, captured UK’s The Sun.

1. It increases life expectancy

Men who kiss their wives in the morning live five years longer than men who don't.

2. It prevents tooth decay

Kissing increases the mouth's production of saliva, which helps to clean the mouth and prevent tooth decay.

3. We swap more than just germs

We swap an average of 9ml of water, 0.7mg of protein, 0.18mg of organic compounds, 0.71mg of different fats and 0.45mg of sodium chloride when we lock lips.

4. But there are still A LOT of germs involved

One millilitre of saliva contains about 100,000,000 bacteria.

5. It actually burns calories - get kissing, ladies

Couples can burn anywhere between 2 and 26 calories per minute while kissing and can use up to 30 muscles.

6. We do a lot of it



The average person will spend an estimated 20,160 minutes of their lifetime kissing. That's 336 hours, or 14 whole days.

7. Some more than others, it seems

The longest kiss ever recorded was 58 hours, 35 minutes and 58 seconds - nearly two and a half days.

8. Our brains know how to find our lovers lips

Sixty-six per cent of people close their eyes during a kiss. Our brains have special neurons that help us to locate each other's lips in the dark.

9. It can stop us falling ill

There is some evidence, from past studies, to suggest that kissing provides us a means of protecting ourselves from certain viruses.

10. It's more than just fun - it's stress relieving

Holding hands and kissing reduces levels of the stress hormone cortisol, thereby lowering blood pressure and optimising immune response

11. There's a scientific reason for why we want more

When you kiss someone for the first time you get a spike in dopamine, which makes you crave more.