Researchers Say Kissing Can Transmit Depression and Anxiety

It has long been known that kissing can transmit infectious diseases such as the common cold, herpes simplex (oral herpes), and Epstein-Barr virus, which causes infectious mononucleosis—commonly referred to as the "kissing disease." These illnesses spread through saliva, which carries billions of bacteria and viruses. However, the Iranian study published in the journal Exploratory Research and Hypothesis in Medicine takes this concept further by exploring how depression and anxiety might also spread between partners via changes in oral microbiota—the community of microorganisms living in the mouth.