Study finds elderly people are sexually active
A study has found that elderly people are sexually active. FILE PHOTO
What you need to know:
- The study also found one in 10 over-75s have had multiple sexual partners since turning 65.
- Lucy Harmer, Director of Services at Independent Age, said strong relationships are important in later life.
Many elderly people are sexually active contrary to a popular belief, a new survey from the United Kingdom has shown.
According to the survey, more than half of people aged 65 and above say they do not feel like they have enough sex.
With only one in six people aged 80 and above saying they feel like they have enough sex, the study suggests that age is no barrier to having a sex life.
The study on elderly persons and attitudes towards sex was carried out by Censuswide and published by Independent Age, an older peoples’ charity based in the UK, on February 14, 2018. It was done on 2,000 older Britons online.
The study further showed that condoms are the most frequently used form of precaution against Sexually Transmitted Diseases among people aged 65 and over.
“But one in every 11 people in this age bracket do not take any precautions against STDs when they start having sex with a new partner,” the study revealed.
ROMANCE
Even more shocking is that old people are active online searching for sex partners.
According to the study, more than 29 per cent of the older people who are in relationships that started in the past 10 years say they met their partners online.
Friendship, receiving a hug and having a romantic relationship were picked as some of the most important things to people aged 65 and over.
And almost one in three people have had sex on a first date since turning 65, or would consider it.
The same proportion of over-65s said one of the only reasons they would stop having sex would be a lack of opportunity.
RELATIONSHIPS
The study also found one in 10 over-75s have had multiple sexual partners since turning 65.
This survey was published alongside guidance from Independent Age for older people on a range of issues about relationships in later life, be it ending a relationship or starting a new one.
Lucy Harmer, Director of Services at Independent Age, said strong relationships are important in later life, and ideas about friendship, romance and intimacy may well change throughout life.
“Close relationships can offer emotional support, and can make a difference by staving off loneliness and giving you resilience and support to get through difficult patches in life,” she said.
She however stated that sex, dating and relationships can be complex, and that does not stop when people get older.
