According to a UNAM specialist, in couples who have spent a lot of time together, kisses become more important than sexual relations
All love stories, at least those that claim to be, begin with a kiss , that secret ingredient of passion, love and desire, capable of making us vibrate and transport us to another dimension.
Its power is such that a kiss is capable of causing different changes in the brain , according to Ignacio Camacho, a researcher at the Faculty of Chemistry of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).
"When we kiss, changes can occur in different parts of the brain, related to satisfaction, attachment, emotions, even sexual awakening," he says in a statement issued by the highest university.
And think about it a bit, how many times have you lost your head due to a kiss from your love or else, it sure fills you with illusion to think of that moment when you will give the first love kiss to your crush (if one day happens).
Even, he continued, in some couples, especially those who have spent a lot of time together, kisses could be more important than sexual relations, because they have a meaning of reinforcing sentimental ties.
This may be the reason why you enjoy going to bed with your partner with a good kissing session, even when there is no intimacy.
"There are so many sensations that a kiss on the mouth provokes, that different biological functions have been assigned to it: it could be the prelude to a sexual relationship, but also to the selection of a partner," said Ignacio Camacho, academic at the Faculty of Chemistry ( FQ) of the UNAM.
The secret and its importance in affective relationships is that the sensitivity of the lips, 100 times greater than that of the fingers.
"The lips are one of the regions of the body with the greatest representation in the cerebral cortex, and this is related to the importance they have in the phonoarticulator system, involved in verbal communication," he stressed.
More kisses, more happy couples
After noting that kisses even have a historical connotation, since representations of people kissing occur in 90 percent of cultures around the world, the UNAM specialist noted that the frequency with which couples join their lips is linked with the satisfaction they have in their relationship.
“Many times they stop having that approach because they are no longer happy; although it can also be a cultural question, to think that after many years it can be corny to continue kissing ”.
The sensations and emotions that are generated by a kiss cause a lot of pleasure, so we want to repeat it, he explained.
"By joining our lips to those of another person, in our brain some neurotransmitters related to pleasure are released, as well as molecules called opioid peptides and other very important substances in attachment, such as oxytocin and vasopressin," added the scientist.
Kisses on the first date? When we meet someone, the first kisses are important, but they are more important for the woman than for the man, "and that could be because the act of kissing could be related to the selection of a partner."
This explains why the various substances found in saliva, such as hormones and proteins involved in the immune response, are detected in an unknown way by the other person, and this could lead them to think that their partner is suitable for maintaining a relationship that involves procreation.
So while it’s a good idea to be lustful, consider giving that hunk you dated a kiss to see if he’s a good match in this regard.
Kisses and its benefits
According to Ignacio Camacho in general, kissing can be beneficial for the body.
To "land" this fact in a real context, he noted that, in Japan, a country where people do not usually kiss so much on the mouth, studies have been done on people who suffer from allergies, such as rhinitis.
“They take blood samples, they play music, they kiss for half an hour and then they take their blood again. There you can see how the molecules involved in allergies decrease; thus, it seems that kissing is a good relaxant and alternative against allergies ”, he stressed.
Ignacio Camacho acknowledged that despite what is known about kisses, there are still aspects that are unknown, such as what are the changes at the neurophysiological or neuroendocrine level.
Until now, the study models are mostly based on questionnaires or presentation of images so that people express what they feel or think; hormones are also measured in blood samples. It is actually a complex phenomenon.
Diseases?
But kissing on the mouth can also have a negative part, because through saliva infections can be spread, caused by viruses or bacteria, such as influenza, mononucleosis, also called kissing disease and other types of herpes.
However, kissing someone is a sign of attachment, of having a feeling for the other person and wanting to be with them, said the expert in the study of the effects and mechanisms of action of sex hormones, and their role in sexual behavior in animal models.
"The sensations produced by the kiss are universal", closes the expert in Chemistry.
So many are the benefits of kissing that there is even a study that claims that eating kisses with your partner improves your health. So our tip of the day: run for your partner and enjoy a good kissing session.