By Denis Ocwich
You might have had a first hand experience, watched it in the movies, at the corner of the street, or in a nightclub. Forget about the “one-off” between lovers, or the snap exchange of pecks by wedding couples at the altar. It is about the regular passionate mouth-to-mouth kisses lasting longer than a minute or so. Some people actually do it until their jaws lock!
The French kiss has for ages been practised world-wide as one aspect of affection, especially among lovebirds.
Medical experts have now pegged a host of health benefits to it: For one, regular kissing boosts one’s oral hygiene. It also carries along with it lots of rewards like preventing tooth decay, relieving tension, slowing down your ageing process, helping you lose weight and generally relaxing your soul.
“After eating, your mouth is full of sugar solution and acidic saliva, which cause plaque build-up. Kissing is nature’s own cleaning process,” says Dr Peter Gorden, Dental Adviser at the British Dental Association.
Dr Myers Lugemwa of Mulago hospital agrees: “Kissing increases salivary action in the mouth, hence reducing and removing plaque formation in the mouth.”
As far as prolonging ageing is concerned, this is how it works:
“Kissing exercises lip, cheek and jaw muscles so that they don’t sag,” Myers says.
A passionate kiss is also a great relaxation technique, says stress consultant Michelle Kay Mcnabb on the www.coolnurse.com
“When your mouth is in a kissing position, you are almost smiling and as our emotions and body language are so closely linked, it is almost impossible to smile and feel tense at the same time,” Mcnabb explains. “Also your breathing becomes deeper and your eyes close when you kiss; that is what you do when you relax.”
Myers also says a good kiss helps one get mental and psychological relaxation. “If you are stressed, kissing can help reduce stress, and in a way you are prolonging your life.”
Psychologist and clinical sexologist Joy Davidson of the Indiana University, School of Medicine likens kissing to meditation.
“It stops the buzz in your mind, it quells anxiety,” he writes on his website my.webmd.com
Kissing leads to touching and massaging, which releases oxytocin, a hormone known to have a calming effect on the body.
Bryant Stamford, director of the health promotion centre at the University of Louisville notes that kissing can help obese people cut back on their weight.
“During a really passionate kiss, you might lose two calories a minute — double your metabolic rate,” he explains.
According to studies, kissing helps lovers to check out whether their partner’s “chemistry” (smell) will work out in a relationship. “In humans, it is thought that smell plays a vital part in subconscious attraction, and if your pheromones (sex attraction hormones) aren’t “in tune”, you are unlikely to hit of,” says Paul Brown, a sexual and marital therapist as quoted by www.coolnurse.com
But Dr Janet Nambi, head of department of mental health and community psychology at Makerere University’s Institute of Psychology says other factors, including the “quality of the relationship”, ought to be considered for any kissing to yield positive results.
She warns against rushing to kiss somebody with the hope of improving one’s health.
“If the relationship is meaningful and gratifying to both parties, then they can have the relaxation. Otherwise kissing can arouse tension,” says Nambi, a marriage and family therapist.
Now the ball is in your court, reader. With all the bonuses and penalties of kissing, make your judgement on who to and who not to kiss.
Once you have decided to kiss somebody, kiss more and kiss longer — that is what some researchers have suggested.
Ends