Yes, family time is kissing time, but health-wise you'd be
much better off if you offered your cheek or settled for a
friendly handshake.
The herpes virus
If you're handing kisses out to all you come across, you
could end up with a cold sore. Cold sores are caused by the
herpes simplex virus (type l), which is most commonly
transmitted by saliva. It takes three days to a week after
that kiss for the cold sore to develop in or around your
mouth. The bad news is once the herpes virus is in your
system, it's there to stay, remaining dormant until activated
again and a new cold sore forms.
Factors that can activate cold sores include stress, sunlight,
trauma and illness, says Vicky Gowar, an oral hygienist and
the spokesperson for the dental group IVOdent.
Kissing can also spread the Epstein-Barr virus, which causes
glandular fever – also called infective mononucleosis. If
you're unlucky enough to kiss someone with glandular fever,
the most common symptoms you may experience later are
fever, an extremely sore throat and swollen lymph nodes in
the neck.
“Once the symptoms have cleared up you could still be a
carrier of the virus,” Rustenburg general practitioner Dr Anne
Rothman says. "You could infect others with glandular fever
for weeks or months afterwards.”
Virus targets the liver
Summer is not the best time to get a cold so steer clear of
sneezing relatives. Sharing a kiss is the perfect way to
contract an upper respiratory tract infection such as a cold.
Although blood carries higher levels of the hepatitis B virus
than saliva, the condition can still be transmitted by kissing.
“This virus targets the liver,” Dr Rothman says, and
symptoms include jaundice, fatigue, abdominal pain, nausea,
vomiting, loss of appetite and fever.
Periodontitis (gum disease) can also be transmitted by
saliva. Symptoms include smooth, bright red and swollen
gums. You gums may also feel soft and bleed when you
brush your teeth.
Lastly, Gowar warns against German measles (also known
as rubella). You could become infected if you inhale some
droplets when an infected person coughs or even talks.
Kissing someone with German measles will definitely put you
at risk of infection. If you've been immunised you should be
fairly safe but it's still worth being careful as the
immunisation doesn’t provide 100 per cent protection.
“Pregnant women should be careful, especially during the
first three months. German measles could cause the baby to
develop abnormalities such as deafness.”
The art of the offered cheek
Don't feel obliged kiss every single friend or family member
who crosses your path, says etiquette expert Anne Dreyer,
“Kissing is each person's personal choice. It's acceptable to
offer your cheek or shake hands.” Dreyer says time for over-
kissers to realise nowadays people can choose whether or
not they want to kissed. “I simply refuse or offer my cheek.
If that doesn't work, I develop a fake cold on the spot,
claiming a no-kissing policy so as not to infect anyone.”