News

Couples Who Kiss Regularly Are Less Likely To Get Depressed

Published

3 years ago

April 24, 2022

Editor

When it comes to first kisses, scientists agree with those who believe in love at first sight, happy endings and the power of that first glorious embrace. That’s because, Scientists say, a kiss is much more than just a way of saying you fancy someone. It’s an efficient means of working out if your potential partner is the one for you.

In her book: The Science of Kissing, Sheril Kirshenbaum explains: “When we are that close to another person, all our senses are engaged allowing our bodies to assess compatibility and the potential for a long-term relationship.” This behaviour, she says, evolved to help humans fulfill three basic needs – sex drive, romantic love and attachment. “In other words,” she says, “kissing helps us find partners, commit to one person and keep couples together long enough to have a child.”

So how does locking lips help us achieve all these? When you kiss, you can’t help smelling the other person. And biologists have found that women are more turned on by the smell of men who have very different immune systems from their own.

Kirshenbaum says; “This may be because potential children would have a higher level of genetic diversity, making them healthier and more likely to survive. In this manner, kissing serves as nature’s ultimate litmus test to help us determine when to pursue a relationship.”

And once we find our perfect genetic mate, our bodies respond instinctively to his kiss by flooding our systems with feel-good hormones. She explains that: “A good romantic kiss quicken our pulse and dilates our pupils, which is probably part of the reason so many of us close our eyes. Our brains receive more oxygen than normal and breathing can become irregular and deepen. Our cheeks flush too but that’s only the beginning. There’s an associated rise in the neurotransmitter dopamine, responsible for craving and desire.

“Meanwhile, serotonin spikes to stimulate obsessive thoughts about a partner. This is the same neurotransmitter involved in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OeD), Oxytocin, popularly called the love hormone, is involved in bonding, fostering a sense of attachment. This is the chemical likely responsible for maintaining a love relationship over years and decades.”

We should not underestimate the importance of these chemicals. After all, how many of us have left the cinema after a dull romantic comedy and pointed out the ‘lack of chemistry’ between the couple who are supposed to be mad about each other? Or dreamt about how it would feel to kiss someone we have fantasised about for months – then been disappointed by the reality? For while that first kiss can be powerful enough to spark a lifelong romance, it can also break the spell.

A study of more than 1,000 students by the evolutionary psychologist George Gallup found that two-thirds of women and over half of men had been attracted to a potential partner – until they shared a disastrous first kiss. His team also found that men and women used kissing for different reasons. While the men mostly saw kissing as just a necessary step on the way to eventually having sex, women thought it was much more important. More men than women said they preferred kissing their partners with open mouths and using their tongues. And there’s even a good reason for that. Male saliva contains testosterone so it could affect how attractive the kissers find each other. Some scientists believe that men prefer sloppy kisses because they’re a way of working out how fertile a woman is – by ‘testing’ her saliva for tiny traces of oestrogen.

So when your kids scoff at your memories of that first magical kiss, tell them that without kissing, they might not have been here today. And make sure you don’t get out of the habit once your romance settles down. Research shows that couples who kiss regularly are less likely to get depressed, and those who kiss each other hello and goodbye have happier relationships than those who no longer do this.

How To Tell If Your Marriage Would Last

Are you and your spouse destined to be together forever? You don’t need a crystal ball. Just answer these five questions set by experts, honestly … Can you let things drop? Doesn’t it grate on you that he met his ex for lunch (a year age)? Is he still harping on about how you forgot your anniversary once?

Both of you need to be generous enough to put it behind you and move on. Everyone has got a past: we all mess up sometimes. Can you enjoy doing nothing together? If you can quite happily lounge around together, just enjoying the sound of silence, you work well as a couple. Do you fight right? If he’s a sulker and you’re a shouter. You could find it tricky to get to the bottom of an argument. So think about how you hammer things out and remember it is not about winning or losing – you both want the same thing.

Can you stop trying to change each other? We all try to fine-tune our partners a bit, but if you’re always offering to fix things for him, you will end up disappointed. You need to learn to accept the way your partner is or find someone you don’t need to fix!

Can you share your secrets? If you’ve opened up to him about your deepest, darkest moments but he is reluctant to talk, then you may need to think twice. It is by being open that we achieve intimacy.

Source: VANGUARD

News

‘We Cure Madness With Madness’: Five Things To know About Taye Currency

Published

9 hours ago

September 28, 2025

Editor

The name ‘Taye Currency’ has continued to trend on social media following the Fuji music artiste’s performance at the coronation of the 44th Olubadan of Ibadan, Oba Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja, on Friday.

Taye Currency, during his performance at the coronation event which took place at Mapo Hall in Ibadan, rendered a line in Yoruba, “Were la fi n wo were,” which translates to “we cure madness with madness.”

The line, which seems not to have sat well with many Nigerians, particularly those of Yoruba heritage, has continued to generate a lot of criticism, with many opining that such lyrics were not befitting for the occasion, which had in attendance dignitaries including President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, governors, ministers, traditional rulers, and other crème de la crème of society.

Reacting to the development, the Olu of Kemta Orile in Odeda Local Government Area of Ogun State, Oba Adetokunbo Tejuosho, criticised Taye Currency for what he described as “classless and unbefitting lyrics.”

According to him, the musician failed to accord the coronation its due respect, describing his lyrics as unbefitting of the sacred ceremony.

He said, “The throne of our ancestors is not a stage for mockery, nor the coronation of a great monarch a subject for careless entertainment.

“Kingship is sacred, adorned with honor and guarded by tradition. It demands reverence, dignity, honor, class and the utmost respect from all who stand in its presence.

“Listening to the musician (Taye Currency), who was invited to render music before the Crown, as a matter of fact before the entire world, to serenade the audience and sing in a way to express admiration, singing songs like (were lafi n wo were) We use madness to cure madness.

“Such lyrics were classless and unbefitting of such occasions, it is insulting to the sacredness of the gathering.”

While Taye Currency is well known among Fuji music lovers, especially those from Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, his performance at the Olubadan coronation has made people want to know more about him.

In this article, Tribune Online takes a look at five things to know about the trending Fuji musician.

1. Full Name and Age

His full name is Taye Akande Adebisi. Apart from his popular stage name, Taye Currency, he is also known as ‘Apesin.’ He celebrated his 50th birthday on December 17, 2024.

2. Appointment as Special Adviser on Culture and Tourism

Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, appointed him as Special Adviser on Culture and Tourism in 2019 during the governor’s first tenure.

3. Father of a Lawmaker

In 2019, Taye Currency’s son, Yusuf Oladeni Adebisi, was elected into the Oyo State House of Assembly to represent Ibadan South-West Constituency 1, which earned Taye Currency another nickname, ’Baba Honorable’ (Honourable’s father). He was re-elected in 2023 as a lawmaker on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

4. Financial Setback

In April 2025, Taye Currency publicly lamented that he lost N10 million to CBEX, a crypto/investment scheme many now regard as a collapsed Ponzi platform. He explained that he was convinced to invest by close associates, only to see the scheme crumble shortly after.

5. Affiliation with Pasuma

Taye Currency has often maintained that although he never learnt Fuji music from his senior colleague, Wasiu Alabi Odetona, popularly known as Pasuma, whom he first met in 1993, he still considers him a boss.

News

JUST IN: PENGASSAN Strike May Trigger Nationwide Blackout, Thermal Plants Shut Down

Published

12 hours ago

September 28, 2025

Editor

Nigerians may face a nationwide blackout from Monday as power generation companies have raised the alarm over an imminent shutdown of thermal plants following directives from the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria.

The Executive Secretary of the Association of Power Generating Companies, Joy Ogaji, raised the alarm over the imminent blackout in a WhatsApp message on Sunday.

She revealed that gas suppliers had issued notices to halt supply to thermal power stations in line with PENGASSAN’s strike resolution.

“Good day, all. Thermal GenCos have received notification from our gas suppliers to shut down our thermal power plants following directives from PENGASSAN. The Nigerian Gas Infrastructure Company has specifically requested GenCos to comply,” Ogaji said in the post.

She warned that the development could plunge the country into darkness, as hydroelectric dams alone cannot sustain the national grid.

“Please all be notified of the imminent darkness, as hydros alone cannot sustain the system,” she added.

The warning comes hours after PENGASSAN announced that it would commence a nationwide strike on Monday to protest the dismissal of over 800 workers at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery.

The oil workers’ union, after an emergency National Executive Council meeting on Saturday, directed its members in all oil and gas installations to down tools until the sackings were reversed.

The action could cripple crude production, fuel supply, gas distribution and now electricity generation, worsening the hardship faced by Nigerians.

With thermal stations accounting for more than 70 per cent of Nigeria’s electricity supply, industry experts say the shutdown will trigger widespread outages, stretch hydro plants beyond capacity and heighten the risk of a nationwide system collapse.

News

Customs Launches One-stop-shop To Cut Cargo Clearance To 48 Hours

Published

13 hours ago

September 28, 2025

Editor

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) says it has officially introduced its ‘One-Stop-Shop (OSS)’ initiative aimed at reducing cargo clearance time to 48 hours.

NCS spokesperson, Abdullahi Maiwada, made this known in a statement on Sunday in Abuja.

Maiwada said the initiative was unveiled recently during a meeting between NCS management and Customs Area Controllers, chaired by the Comptroller-General (C-G), Adewale Adeniyi, in Abuja.

He said the meeting deliberated on the service’s modernisation agenda and the role of leadership in driving reforms across commands.

Maiwada quoted the C-G as describing the OSS as a “transformative shift” which aligned with global best practices and the Federal Government’s Ease of Doing Business policy.

Adeniyi said the reform was designed to sanitise operations, reduce duplication of efforts and ensure predictability in customs procedures.

“The OSS initiative will not only shorten clearance time from 21 days to 48 hours, but it will also strengthen trader confidence, restore transparency and make our operations more business-friendly,” Adeniyi said.

The C-G acknowledged the role of technology in customs operations but also emphasised the importance of physical engagement with officers.

“As much as technology has helped us, it has its limits. There are moments when physical presence, coming together under one roof, adds weight and value to our deliberations,” he said.

The NCS boss said the reform would be piloted at Apapa, Tin Can Island and Onne Ports before being rolled out nationwide.

He added that the initiative was constitutionally supported by the NCS Act 2023 and aligned with the World Trade Organisation’s Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA).

“This is not just a policy. It is a statement of intent that reflects our determination to build a modern, transparent and trader-friendly Customs Service,” he said.

The spokesperson said that under the OSS framework, all customs units would work jointly on flagged declarations, eliminating multiple checks and reducing delays.

According to him, consignments cleared under the OSS will not be subject to re-interception, thereby reducing costs and enhancing trade facilitation.

He said the meeting also provided a platform to review the NCS accountability framework, including a new central dashboard that tracks clearance times, interventions and stakeholder satisfaction.