Why Is Kissing Important? 16 Health Benefits of Kissing

1. Stress relief: Kissing releases chemicals in your brain such as serotonin and dopamine, which are known to reduce stress levels and make you feel good.
2. Anxiety reduction: Lowered stress can also help reduce anxiety and promote an overall sense of wellness.
3. Improved self-esteem: In addition to making you feel happier, kissing can reduce cortisol levels in your brain, which may help you feel better about yourself.
4. Emotional bonding: Lip kissing induces the release of the hormone oxytocin, which has been linked to causing feelings of affection and attachment with other people. It can help nurture healthy long-term relationships.
5. Lowered blood pressure: Kissing can increase your heart rate, which can in turn dilate your blood vessels and improve blood flow. This causes a decrease in your blood pressure.
6. Relief from headache: Dilation of your blood vessels can help offer relief from stress-related headache.
7. Relief from cramps: Increased blood flow and lowered stress may offer relief from period cramps and other menstrual cycle symptoms.
8. Reduced blood cholesterol: According to a 2009 study published in the Western Journal of Communication, regular kissing may be associated with lowered blood cholesterol levels.
9. Increased immunity: The exchange of saliva with your partner exposes you to new germs that could help strengthen your immune system.
10. Reduced allergic response: Because stress can aggravate allergic reactions, kissing may help reduce allergic reactions by reducing stress.
11. Calorie burn: Depending on how ardently you kiss, lip kissing may even burn calories.
12. Healthier mouth: Lip kissing stimulates the secretion of saliva, which helps combat microbes that cause infections in the mouth.
13. Face workout: Lip kissing requires the use of 24 facial muscles and can act as a good face workout, helping tighten your facial muscles.
14. Glowing skin: Lip kissing improves blood flow to your skin. Increased blood flow not only makes you blush but also can stimulate the production of collagen and elastin, which are skin-nourishing proteins.
15. Compatibility assessment: Kissing can help you determine physical compatibility with a potential partner.
16. Increased sex drive: Lip kissing is an important part of foreplay, which can increase arousal and make sex a more rewarding experience. 

While kissing offers some health benefits, exchanging saliva with someone can also spread diseases such as:

• Colds: You can catch a cold either from airborne droplets or by direct contact with secretions from the infected person’s nose and throat.
• Glandular fever: Also known as the kissing disease or infectious mononucleosis, glandular fever is caused by the Epstein-Barr virus. The virus spreads through saliva, and infection occurs through contact, including lip kisses.
• Herpes infection: Herpes blisters can cause transmission of the virus, which can spread to others even after the blisters have healed.
• Warts: Warts in the mouth can spread through kissing, especially if there is a recent injury in the mouth.

If you want to lip kiss but want to avoid infections, here are a few tips to follow:

• Avoid kissing when you or another person is sick with a fever or cold.
• Avoid kissing anyone when you or they have an active problematic area such as having cold sore, warts, or ulcers around the lips or mouth.
• Maintain good oral hygiene by brushing and flossing teeth daily.
• Stay up to date on your vaccinations. Vaccines can prevent some infections such as the flu and hepatitis B infection.