11 weird & wonderful facts about kissing

1) The muscle you use to pucker your lips is called the orbicularis oris.

2) Most people tilt their heads to the right when kissing. Scientists theorise that this instinct originates from the womb when we naturally tilt our heads to the right.

3) One kiss requires 146 muscles to co-ordinate, including 34 facial muscles and 112 postural muscles.

4) Kisses are a way for couples to sample pheromones and signal desire.

5) The study of kissing is called philematology and someone who studies kissing is an osculologist.

6) The average person spends two weeks of his or her life kissing.

7) Experts estimate that the average person spends 20,160 minutes in a lifetime kissing - plus-minus two weeks.

8) When you kiss someone for the first time, you get a spike in the neurotransmitter dopamine, making you crave more. Sadly this wears off the more you kiss the same person.

9) Endorphins released during kissing bring on waves of euphoria.

10) Women rate kissing as more important in relationships than men do.

11) When you kiss, five out of 12 of your cranial nerves are engaged. - The Daily Telegraph

- This article was originally published in The Times.