--- title: 5 Things You Need To Know About Kissing description: Everyone in the world may all kiss, but we do so for different reasons canonical: https://time.com/3690851/5-kissing-facts/ author: Eric Barker article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-02-03T05:01:26.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:49:44.130Z article:section: Ideas og:title: 5 Things You Need To Know About Kissing og:description: Everyone in the world may all kiss, but we do so for different reasons og:url: https://time.com/3690851/5-kissing-facts/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta163dc81c91c7bab/69877d0ccd1bba142f6f4fe6/a0187-000054-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4572 og:image:height: 2572 og:image:alt: lipstick-kiss-mark og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 5 Things You Need To Know About Kissing twitter:description: Everyone in the world may all kiss, but we do so for different reasons twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta163dc81c91c7bab/69877d0ccd1bba142f6f4fe6/a0187-000054-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 5 Things You Need To Know About Kissing > Sponsored content. 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A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=b74707ba-8cb0-4d3b-bd68-774e76ff967f&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1) by [Eric Barker](https://time.com/author/eric-barker/) ## Eric Barker Feb 3, 2015 5:01 AM UTC  Lipstick Kiss Lipstick Kiss Getty Images by [Eric Barker](https://time.com/author/eric-barker/) ## Eric Barker Feb 3, 2015 5:01 AM UTC — [Men and women kiss for different reasons](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/do-men-and-women-kiss-for-different-reasons). “Males tend to kiss as a means of gaining sexual favors, or as a means of affecting reconciliation… Females kiss more as a mate-assessment device.” — The odds a woman will kiss her partner on their first date are [1 in 1.85, or about 54%](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/some-interesting-facts-about-kissing). — Most people [naturally turn their head to the right when kissing](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/do-people-naturally-turn-their-head-to-the-ri), whether they’re left or right handed. — Kissing is healthy. Couples instructed to kiss more [“experienced improvements in perceived stress, relationship satisfaction, and total serum cholesterol.”](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/an-easy-way-to-lower-your-cholesterol-thats-a) — Men are [more likely to enjoy their first kiss](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/who-enjoys-their-first-kiss-more-men-or-women) than women are. In fact, women are [more likely to remember their first pair of shoes](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/women-are-more-likely-to-remember-their-first) than their first kiss. **_This piece originally appeared on_** [**_Barking Up the Wrong Tree_**](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2012/07/5-things-you-didnt-know-about-kissing-64648/)**_._** **J** **oin over 150,000 readers. 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Best Place for Workplace Wellness With treadmill desks, meetings on bikes, time off for creativity, and gobs of organic food, tech titans are reinventing how to stay healthy on the job. Jim Wilson—The New York Times/Redux  Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn. Best Place for Aging Well Yes, it can be cold. But with a plethora of stimulating activities and a robust web of support, the Twin Cities prove that growing old doesn't mean slowing down. Getty Images  Denver and Boulder, Colo. Best Place for Keeping Fit The urge to get outside and get moving is contagious in these Rocky Mountain cities, where physical challenge is built into the landscape. Celin Serbo—Aurora Photos/Corbis  Plano, Texas Best Place for Staying Safe Once a rural outpost, this booming, diverse city has kept its small-town vibe, thanks in part to a police force and community that knows how to work together. Misty Keasler—Redux for TIME  Portland, Ore. Best Place for a Healthy Environment Small, walkable neighborhoods, 300 miles of bike paths, and urban policies that foster active living and sustainability make for one clean, green city. Getty Images  Boston, Mass. Best Place for Health Care This history-rich city is home to some of the nation's most advanced medical institutions and policies that help ensure that quality care is available to all. K.C. Cohen—Courtesy of Boston Children's Hospital  Provo and Orem, Utah Best Place for Spiritual Well-Being A stunning Rocky Mountain backdrop and a tight-knit population that lives its faith contribute not only to this region's serenity but also to lower rates of disease. Getty Images Related posts: [How To Stop Being Lazy And Get More Done – 5 Expert Tips](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/08/how-to-stop-being-lazy/) [6 Things The Most Productive People Do Every Day](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/06/most-productive-people/) [New Harvard Research Reveals A Fun Way To Be More Successful](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/09/be-more-successful/) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3690851/5-kissing-facts/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3690851/5-kissing-facts/"},"headline":"5 Things You Need To Know About Kissing","datePublished":"2015-02-03T05:01:26.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:49:44.130Z","description":"Everyone in the world may all kiss, but we do so for different reasons","url":"https://time.com/3690851/5-kissing-facts/","keywords":["Psychology","kiss","Sex/Relationships"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta163dc81c91c7bab/69877d0ccd1bba142f6f4fe6/a0187-000054-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eric Barker","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/eric-barker/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta163dc81c91c7bab/69877d0ccd1bba142f6f4fe6/a0187-000054-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"lipstick-kiss-mark","caption":"lipstick-kiss-mark","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/psychology/","name":"Psychology"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3690851/5-kissing-facts/","name":"5 Things You Need To Know About Kissing"}}]}] ```