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Here at Merenda Real Estate, we like to recognize holidays \u2013 the important, the solemn and the frivolous.\u00a0Which is why today’s post is dedicated to National Kissing Day.
\nWhether good or bad, we all remember our first kiss, right? And some of us have (hopefully) improved our pucker game since then…But did you know there are actually health benefits to receiving a little lip service? Here are seven reasons why kissing is good for you:<\/p>\n
Although you may think the sharing of saliva through kissing may be unsanitary (we share about 80 million bacteria during a passionate 10 second kiss) we\u2019re actually more likely to become ill by shaking hands than kissing.<\/p>\n
Kissing can be effective at calming you down, reducing anxiety and making you feel less stressed because it decreases cortisol and increases serotonin levels in the brain.\u00a0In fact, some people even claim kissing has similar benefits to meditation, helping us feel calmer.<\/p>\n
Our lips contain blood vessels which dilate when we kiss.\u00a0What\u2019s more, as your heart races from the excitement of a passionate kiss, our blood flow increases which also contributes to reducing high blood pressure.<\/p>\n
We use up to 30 muscles while kissing which tones the facial muscles. So while you may hit the gym to build your biceps, all you may need is some passionate snogging to tone up your face.<\/p>\n
Swapping saliva with someone else increases the flow of your own saliva, which helps keep the mouth, teeth and gums healthy.<\/p>\n
Kissing with tongues comes from an evolutionary urge to find a genetically compatible mate. Humans don\u2019t have a strong sense of smell, and so kissing enabled us to smell and taste a person to determine certain physiological responses, since we tend to feel more attracted to someone with a different immune response.<\/p>\n
(Plus kissing helps to tell whether the spark is there in the early stages of seeing someone.)<\/p>\n
A good kiss releases the hormone oxytocin \u2013 AKA the \u201clove hormone\u201d \u2013 which has been shown to keep monogamous people faithful and makes them more trusting towards one another.\u00a0Kissing also releases dopamine, which strengthens feelings of romantic attachment.<\/p>\n
So know you’re armed with the knowledge that the pucker is a powerful tool in the arsenal of romance,\u00a0get on out there and lay one on someone you love!<\/p>\n