Kissing and Sexual Currency
We don’t give kissing the credit it deserves. It can make your sex hotter and even heighten the small, everyday interactions with your partner, a thing we sexologists call “sexual currency.” A study from The Archive of Sexual Behavior shows that kissing helps to increase pair bonding and feelings of intimacy between partners. It’s these small moments of slightly lusty affection that establishes you and your partner as sexual beings who relate to each other on an erotic level. The study also showed that couples who engaged in regular romantic kissing were more likely to see these smooch-fests turn into further sexual engagement. Another study from Sexual and Relationship Therapy provides evidence that kissing frequency is a positive indicator of overall sexual and relationship satisfaction between couples. Seriously, science has spoken, pals. Kissing is a real unsung hero.It’s small moments of slightly lusty affection that establishes you and your partner as sexual beings who relate to each other on an erotic level.“Kissing produces a chemical reaction in the brain, especially oxytocin, which is the bonding and love chemical,” explains Lucy Rowett, a certified intimacy coach and clinical sexologist. “Many women use kissing as a way to determine if a partner will be good in bed, so if your partner is a good kisser, it's more likely you will have better sex, too.” Science has an interesting explanation for why kissing plays such a fundamental role in our attraction to a mate. According to researchers at Oxford University, kissing may help a woman (or vulva-owning person) determine if a partner is a good genetic match. When you swap spit with someone, your body is subtly decoding if that person’s immune system is complementary to yours and would produce strong offspring. That might not be the most romantic thing in the world, but it’s pretty cool, nonetheless.
How to Take Your Kissing to the Next Level
- Make kissing a relationship priority.
- Slow it down, babe.
- Not all kissing means sex.
- Get WEIRD with it.
- Want to get extra sexy? Add in some mutual masturbation.