This Is Why We Close Our Eyes When We Kiss, According To Science

Don't worry, you're not ugly. It's just science. Or hey, maybe you are ugly. Science doesn't judge.

The point is our good ole friend science can now explain why people close their eyes when they're getting smooched. You might not even notice your eyelids fluttering shut whenever you lean in for some lip action, but almost everyone does it.

It's not just because that's how you saw Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling do it on the TV. It's not just because eye contact makes the whole saliva-swapping ordeal 10 times more awkward (though I would argue that's still a great reason to keep those eyes shut).

Nope, based on a recent study from psychologists Polly Dalton and Sandra Murphy, there's a real bona fide scientific reason for shutting your eyes: Keeping your eyes open distracts you too much from feeling the kiss!

The study, which was published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, had participants perform a visual task (a letter search) and then measured their responses to a tactile stimulation (a vibration). Sensitivity to the vibration was much lower while participants were performing the visual task than when they were not.

Going by this logic, it's really difficult for our brains to focus on kissing if we have our eyes open. Closing our eyes helps us shut out all those visual distractions so we can really enjoy the sensation of another person's tongue in our mouths.

Now, this goes for all kinds of tactile stimulation, if you know what I mean.

Yep, I'm talking about ball pits, people. Next time you visit a play place, be sure to close your eyes in order to get the full experience.

Citations: Why Do We Close Our Eyes When We Kiss? Science Finally Has An Answer (Bustle), Complex visual tasks reduce people's ability to notice a touch (ScienceDaily)