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. 2020 Jun;39 Suppl 1(Suppl 1):22-29.
doi: 10.1111/ajag.12774.

It's not age that prevents sexual activity later in life

Rosanne Freak-Poli  1   2
Affiliations

It's not age that prevents sexual activity later in life

Rosanne Freak-Poli. Australas J Ageing. 2020 Jun.

Abstract

Objective: To describe key factors that facilitate sexual behaviour in later life.

Methods: Re-analysis of data from a study of 2,374 Dutch older adults.

Results: Partner availability, gender and health are likely to be more important factors influencing sexual behaviour engagement than the factor of age in later life. Lack of partner availability, traditional gender roles and poor health are associated with older age. However, current generations of older adults will be more capable, less ashamed of their sexual desires and engage in more sexual behaviour than prior generations.

Conclusion: This analysis observed that sexual activity is associated with partner availability and better health, rather than age, countering stereotypes of decline in sexual behaviour and normalising sexual activity and desire in later life.

Keywords: 80 and over; age factors; aged; aging; geriatrics; healthy aging; sex factors; sexual behavior; sexual health; sexual partners; sexuality; touch.

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Conflict of interest statement

The Rotterdam Study is supported by Erasmus Medical Centre and Erasmus University Rotterdam, the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO), the Netherlands Organization for Health Research and Development (ZonMw), the Netherlands Genomics Initiative, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sports and the European Commission (DG XII). RFP is affiliated with Erasmus Medical Centre and Monash University. RFP is supported by a Heart Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship (101927). RFP declares no further conflicts of interest. The writing of the manuscript and the decision to submit the manuscript for publication were solely at the discretion of RFP.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Age‐stratified percentage of older adults engaging in sexual activity or physical tenderness in the previous 6 months (n = 2,374). Information originally presented in Freak‐Poli et al.11 ‘y’ denotes ‘years’. ■ Sexual activity; formula image Physical tenderness
Figure 2
Figure 2
Examples of characteristics associated with sexual activity and physical tenderness in the past 6 months (n = 2,374). Information originally presented in Freak‐Poli et al.11 The findings are presented in odds ratios (OR), where 1.0 represents no difference and less than 1.0 represents more engagement in the factor's reference group. The reference group for ‘No bike’ is current bicycle rider without effort. The reference group for ‘Smoker’ is never smoked tobacco. age 1 yr = ageing by 1 year
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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