Aging is a frightening thought to many. Curiously, we’ve long sought ways to extend our lives as much as possible, but we don’t necessarily like the consequences of that. We’ve grown to see people get old and their quality of life decrease as time plays on their body and it begins to break down.
As we’ve increased our average lifespans longer and longer we are starting to learn how to take care of our bodies to extend our physical abilities for as long as we can. Nutrition, exercise and an active lifestyle can be very effective in extending quality of life so those golden years really are gleaming with fun.
But there is one part of our bodies we still have much to learn about—and it is probably the most frightening potential health failings we face. Nobody wants to think of a future that potentially involves dementia and the loss of our mental faculties. Fortunately, some new research provides encouragement in how we might stave off the effects of dementia—and that we might be able to do it with sex!
Sex for health?
A recent study conducted in England attempted to find correlations between the sex lives of people aged 50-89 and their abilities to remember word lists and number sequences. Those in the study were asked to remember specific lists placement of numbers in orders and then offer them back
It turns out that people who have a more active sex life in their later years were better able to complete these memory tasks—some by a significant amount! Sexually active men scored an astonishing 23 percent higher in the word tests and 3 percent higher in the number tests. Women also scored higher in each category.
So what do these results mean? How can this help people enjoy robust lives in their latters years?
One main benefit to this study would be if people start to realize the benefits of senior sex and how it is a part of a healthy lifestyle. We’ve come to regard sex by older folks as something completely undesirable and gross. People are actively discouraged from pursuing sexual activity as their age, unless they are some debonair, older gentleman who is really interesting. Rarely are older women considered a person of desire.
Staying vital
All of that should change. Just because people become older doesn’t mean that their sexuality should just turn off. Long gone should be the idea that having kids is the ultimate expression of sexuality and that the tap of sexual desires turns off. This has never been true, people of age have always continued to have sexual desires, but the image of doting, kindly grandparents has long dominated. Countless older folks would rather be seen as the vital, sexy people they are!
And now, there’s a reason to ensure our desire for GILFs remains high! If somehow the thought of older people being sexual turns you off, remember, they’re doing it for their cognitive health! And really, just don’t be turned off by people enjoying sex. If you do, you’re out of your mind.
Jon Pressick is the sex community's international gadabout and Cherry Banana's writer in residence. An award-winning sex writer and blogger, Jon is the editor of the critically-acclaimed Best Sex Writing of the Year, Volume 1. He is a frequent contributor to Cherry Banana with a range of sex-related content and his writing has appeared in numerous magazines and books, as well as all across the Internet. Jon is also a co-host and producer of the long-running sex radio show Sex City. You can keep up with his many sex-related articles here at Cherry Banana or at his own blog, Sex in Words.
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