The Science Of Kissing

Advice
  • Sunday, March 27 2011 @ 09:39 am
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The kiss: it's a gesture that couldn't be more simple, yet it has a complicated evolutionary history.

Call it whatever you want...making out, Frenching, smooching...an Eskimo kiss, a butterfly kiss, xoxoxo...the touching of two people's lips is a move that captures our imaginations, sets our hearts racing, and, believe it or not, performs several very important biological functions. Author and scientist Sheril Kirshenbaum, in her new book The Science of Kissing, traces the history of the kiss and uncovers the vital role locking lips plays in human relationships.

Kissing, it turns out, is more than just a sign of affection or a precursor to sex. The urge to kiss is born out of thousands of years of evolution, and produces biological and chemical reactions that are essential to the formation and maintenance of human relationships, and the propagation of the species. Kirshenbaum's book takes a deep look into the origins and functions of the kiss, and is filled with fun facts like:

  1. Kissing can enhance a woman's libido. Beyond its obvious usefulness during foreplay, the kiss contributes to ramping up a woman's sex drive by providing a vehicle to transfer testosterone from a man to the woman he is kissing via his saliva.
  2. There is a biological reason that most people close their eyes while kissing. Closing your eyes during a kiss allows you to focus on the moment without being distracted by outside elements, and it's also an easy way to avoid the potential awkwardness of staring at your partner's face in such an up-close-and-personal way, but it serves another, deeper purpose as well. When humans lock lips, the body's autonomic nervous system goes into overdrive, causing our pupils to dilate. Their enlarged state means that an increased amount of light enters our eyes and they become more sensitive, which could partially explain our tendency to close our eyes during passionate kisses.
  3. A kiss helps us evaluate the suitability of possible mates. A woman's breath while kissing can help men determine whether or not she is fertile. During menstruation, a woman's mouth carries excess bacteria, which frequently causes bad breath and is a sign that helps her kissing partners find the most fertile woman to mate with. Women also employ kissing to choose their partners, by using their senses of smell to subconsciously evaluate men's genetics. By sampling a potential mate's natural scent during a kiss, women gather vital information on a deep level about a man's reproductive status and DNA that speaks volumes about his suitability as a mate.

Check out Kirshenbaum's The Science of Kissing for more theories and fascinating facts about the origins and evolutionary imperatives of the kiss.