Photo: Krakenimages.com/ Shutterstock
We love kissing, but do you know what happens to your body when you do it?
By Rebecca Jane Stokes — Last updated on Jul 16, 2023
Kissing is pretty great.
Which is kind of crazy, when you think about it. Because the actual mechanics of kissing are kind of odd and off-putting is analyzed from a distance.
Imagine trying to explain how to kiss someone (and why you'd do it in the first place) to an alien from Planet X (the nosiest of all the planets, apparently).
"Well," you'd begin awkwardly, "when you feel physical attraction because of pheromones and stuff you press your mouth to the mouth of the pheromone-sprayer and suck on each other's tongues in an effort to create genital heat."
That is just shocking. I also maybe just put myself off of kissing for the foreseeable future. Sorry, man with whom I am currently bumping uglies!
As gross as it can be described, kissing makes us feel awesome. It turns out there's a lot happening to our bodies beneath the surface that's responsible for our love of locking lips.
Here are 6 strange things that happen to your body when you kiss someone:
1. Increased blood flow
You feel all tingly for a reason. A good kiss sends blood surging, making your nipples stiff, your stomach fluttery, and your downstairs business all hot and bothered.
2. Adrenaline rush
In the throes of passion, your body releases a rush of adrenaline. That's why your heart races and your palms sweat, and all that stuff you read about in romance novels happens.
3. Brain party
When you kiss someone your brain is like "Release the dopamine! Now the oxytocin! Time for this little gal to feel pleasure and an intense bonding connection. Also, she will BE FEARLESS LIKE UNTO THE GODS." Because your brain is like, a little dramatic.
4. Enter the chill zone
When you kiss someone it immediately reduces the amount of tension and stress you feel. This is when you're kissing a partner or someone you're attracted to, so don't go clamping lips with strangers you meet at the airport if you get pre-flight jitters, okay?
5. Getting spitty with it
Lololol I made a Gettin' Jiggy With It joke just now! Oh god, what year is it? Okay, I've calmed down. When you kiss, you exchange up to 9 millimeters of saliva with your partner. That saliva includes 1 billion bacteria. But fret not, 95% of said bacteria are harmless. Sexy.
6. You work your muscles
When you mash face meats with someone you engage 24 of your facial muscles and 100 of your other muscles. A particularly rigorous make-out session can burn up to 100 calories!
More for You:
Rebecca Jane Stokes is an editor, freelance writer, former Senior Staff Writer for YourTango, and the former Senior Editor of Pop Culture at Newsweek. Her bylines have appeared in Fatherly, Gizmodo, Yahoo Life, Jezebel, Apartment Therapy, Bustle, Cosmopolitan, SheKnows, and many others.