A group of scientists in England have hypothesized that the act of kissing was developed as a means to spread germs and build up immunities to illness. In other words, cooties are real.

Dr. Colin Hendrie from the University of Leeds said he believes kissing was instrumental in passing a germ called cytomegalovirus from men to women so that ladies would be protected from it during pregnancy. The bug is found in saliva and is fairly harmless, but it can cause problems with unborn babies.

"Female inoculation with a specific male's cytomegalovirus is most efficiently achieved through mouth-to-mouth contact and saliva exchange," said Hendrie, his erection barely contained beneath his lab coat (we're guessing). Regular kissing between the same couple for six months is the most effective, he said.

The article published in the Medical Hypotheses journal clearly indicates that kissing was developed primarily as a means of survival. Getting to second base, on the other hand, was developed just because it's fun.