Can You Get Herpes From Kissing?

Oral and genital herpes are infections caused by the herpes simplex virus. Please continue reading to learn more about a herpes simplex infection, including whether you can get herpes from kissing an infected person with or without visible symptoms.

What is herpes?

Herpes is a viral infection caused by the herpes simplex virus (HSV). There are two types of HSV—Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) and type 2 (HSV-2). These viruses can cause oral and genital herpes depending on where the virus enters the body.

HSV-1 usually causes oral herpes, which results in fever blisters or cold sores in and around the mouth and lips. Most people contract HSV-1 as children or young adults through saliva (non-sexual contact). The majority of people with oral herpes do not have any symptoms.

HSV-2 causes genital herpes, which is a sexually transmitted infection. It results in pain, itching, and blisters in the genital areas. However, many herpes virus infections are asymptomatic or cause very mild symptoms. The infection may cause nonspecific flu-like symptoms and swollen lymph nodes. As a result, most infected individuals do not know they have HSV.

Oral herpes, caused by HSV-1, can spread from the mouth to the genitals through oral sex. As a result, genital herpes is sometimes from HSV-1.

A person can also get oral herpes if they perform oral sex on a person with genital herpes. But this is rare, and HSV-2 does not typically cause oral herpes.

How do genital herpes and oral herpes spread?

A herpes infection spreads through skin-to-skin contact. A person with a herpes infection can transmit the virus to another person even if they do not have an active outbreak or any herpes symptoms. This is called asymptomatic shedding. In other words, the virus can be transmitted from the skin surface even if the skin appears completely normal. However, the greatest spread risk is when there are active sores and visible symptoms.

HSV-1 (oral herpes) usually spreads through kissing or oral sex. HSV-2 (genital herpes) is usually transmitted through sexual contact (anal or vaginal sex).

Rarely, pregnant women with herpes infections can pass the virus to their babies during delivery.

Once a person becomes infected with the herpes virus, it never leaves the body. However, both HSV-1 and HSV-2 can lie dormant (inactive) in neurons for years after the initial outbreak. They can periodically become reactivated and cause symptoms or spread to other people through saliva and other body secretions.

Can the herpes simplex virus spread via shared objects?

Yes, it is possible to contract herpes through certain shared objects like toothbrushes or lip balms, which may come in contact with the saliva of a person who has herpes. However, sharing objects such as bedding, towels, soap, cutlery, toilet seats, and swimming pools does not spread herpes.

Can herpes be transmitted through saliva?

Yes, oral herpes, caused by HSV-1, mainly spreads through contact with visible sores, saliva, and infected skin surfaces around the lips and mouth.

HSV-1 can also be transmitted through saliva to the genital area of a person if they receive oral sex from a person with oral herpes, but this is less common.

Does herpes spread through oral sex?

Yes, you can contract oral herpes from oral sex because herpes spreads through direct skin contact and saliva.

Can you kiss somebody with herpes?

It is possible to get herpes from kissing someone who has herpes. The virus spreads through skin-to-skin contact and saliva. Therefore, it is best to avoid kissing someone who has a herpes outbreak.

What are the chances of getting herpes from kissing?

Contact with active lesions and saliva can transmit HSV-1, which causes oral herpes. But you don’t need to have a visible cold sore to transmit the infection to others. Studies have shown that almost 1 in 10 adults have HSV-1 in their oral secretions even though they don’t have active herpes outbreaks or visible cold sores. With that said, the chances of transmitting the virus are far greater when there is an active herpes outbreak because the viral load is 1,000 times higher in active HSV-1 lesions.

So, given that so many people have HSV-1 in their saliva is it safe to ever kiss again? The chance of transmitting the virus is low when there are no symptoms, so it is probably safe to kiss someone who doesn’t have a cold sore. However, if someone has an active HSV-1 lesion (lip blister), it’s best to avoid kissing them.

How to prevent transmission of the herpes simplex virus?

As mentioned above, the genital blisters and cold sores that appear during herpes outbreaks are highly contagious. To protect yourself from herpes infections, you should avoid oral contact (kissing, oral sex, and sharing items like lip balm) with a person who has active symptoms around the mouth. You should avoid sexual activity (vaginal or anal sex) with sexual partners with genital herpes.

Using a condom can help reduce the transmission of herpes and other sexually transmitted infections. However, this is not a foolproof method because the condom may not cover all areas of the skin, so you may still pass genital herpes to others. Remember, the virus can spread even if there are no noticeable symptoms.

If you have HSV-1 or HSV-2 and are worried about herpes transmission or frequent outbreaks, talk to your healthcare provider about suppressive therapy with antiviral drugs. Antiviral therapy can help to reduce the severity of subsequent outbreaks. Topical antiviral medications (creams) may be used to manage symptoms, i.e., relieve pain and itching during an outbreak. Also, oral and genital herpes treatment with antiviral medications can reduce the risk of transmission of the virus to others.

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