Study Shows Sexual Satisfaction at 70 Improving
Judith Kuriansky : "people in their 70s today are like people in their 60s from the last decade"
In a new study, researchers found that today's 70-year-olds are having more sex and enjoying more satisfying sex -- than ever before .The study, from Gothenburg University in Sweden, showed that self-reported levels of sexual satisfaction among 70-year-olds in Gothenburg has been on the rise, from 58 percent of 70-year-old men reporting satisfaction in 1976-77 to 71 percent reporting sexual satisfaction in 2000-01. Among women, the increase was from 41 percent to 62 percent during the same period.
"There is no question that people in their 70s today are like people in their 60s from the last decade," said Judith Kuriansky, a clinical psychologist, sex therapist and faculty member at Columbia University Teachers College.
Because the study was based on interviews, it is subject to the honesty of the septuagenarians who were interviewed, but even if this is merely a rise in talking about sex rather than actual sex that is on the rise, Kuriansky sees that alone as a positive. "If they're more comfortable talking about it, they're more comfortable doing it," she said.
The longer life spans of women can prevent many from having partners late in life, but Kuriansky said she has a suggestion for women facing that problem. "Sex therapists like myself encourage people to be self-pleasuring," she said. "If you have no partner, you can continue to be pleasured by yourself." Kuriansky said that the sexual climaxes have the added benefit of easing the pains associated with arthritis.
The article, "Study Shows Sexual Satisfaction at 70 Improving” appeared at July 10th on the website "ABC News" http://abcnews.go.com/Health/ActiveAging/story?id=5334352&page=1
Published Monday, Sep. 29, 2008