When you're in a healthy relationship, sex is one of the best things you can do for yourself. Apart from pleasure, the health benefits are enormous.
Here are the reasons why you shouldn't underestimate sexual activity.
Relieves stress
If you're stressed, sex may be the last thing on your mind. But sex is a great stress reliever. The act of sex floods your brain with all sorts of pleasure chemicals, while also reducing the stress hormone cortisol, he writes CNN.
Dopamine, which affects the pleasure and reward centers in the brain: endorphins, which can reduce pain and stress; oxytocin, also known as the cuddle hormone, is released during sex, with even higher levels after orgasm.
Improves mood
Oxytocin promotes feelings of well-being and happiness
One study found that having sex at least once a week in a committed relationship is enough to make people happy.
Studies of older adults have found that holding hands, hugging, kissing and caressing each other also contribute to a higher quality of life.
Sex can also prevent depression. Research shows that men and women who have relationships with their partners are more satisfied with their mental health. (The same benefits have not been confirmed for masturbation.)
This does not apply to casual sex or relationships. One study of nearly 7500 American students from 14 universities found that those who had multiple relationships had lower levels of happiness and self-esteem and higher levels of risk for depression and anxiety.
Improves sleep
Prolactin, the hormone that relaxes us, is also released after orgasm. The combination of prolactin and all the other "feel good" hormones is why most people sleep better after sex.
To get the highest amount of prolactin, science suggests having an orgasm with a partner. Research show that the level of prolactin in both men and women after intercourse can be 400 percent higher than that after masturbation.
Sleep disorders can be a big problem. For example, men and women with obstructive sleep apnea, characterized by loud snoring and periods of pauses in breathing, report having less active sex lives.
Men are particularly hard hit. To produce testosterone, men need a good period of rest and uninterrupted sleep. Without it, they could have lower testosterone levels and suffer from erectile dysfunction.
What happens when sleep improves? Good news for both sexes: libido increases.
Strengthens immunity
Regular sex can also help fight the disease.
Researchers from Wilkes University in Pennsylvania asked American students how often during the week they had sex, then compared the level of immunoglobulin A, an antibody that functions as the body's first line of defense, in their saliva.
Students who had sex once or twice a week had the highest levels of immunoglobulin A: 30 percent more than those who did not have sex, but also those who had sex three or more times a week. In addition, students who were in long-term, satisfying relationships had the highest levels of antibodies.
It reduces the risk of prostate cancer
Frequent ejaculation is associated with a lower risk of prostate cancer.
A 2004 study published in the British Medical Journal looked at the sex lives of over 50 men aged 000 to 40. Men who reported 75 or more ejaculations per month were less likely to get prostate cancer than men who ejaculated four to seven times a year. A follow-up study published in 21. it showed the same results.
Improves heart health
Men who have sex at least twice a week are 45 percent less likely to suffer from heart disease than men who have sex only once a month or less, research shows. New England Research Institute.
Women also enjoy the benefits of sex when it comes to heart health. One study showed that women who have frequent, extremely satisfying sex also have a lower risk of hypertension.
Good quality sex may protect older women from cardiovascular risks later in life, said study author Hui Liu, an associate professor of sociology at Michigan State University.
That makes sense because of the way women view their sexual relationships, according to sex and relationship educator Laura Berman.
It is not so much the number of orgasms or how strong the sexual experience is that predicts a woman's sexual satisfaction. It's more about how she feels with the person she's having sex with - kisses, cuddles... That's the key to emotional and physical well-being, which benefits a woman's health and heart and everything else, says Berman.
Improves intimacy
A series of four studies found that sex creates more love, not just in the moments after sexual intimacy, but hours later.
The more sex they had, the more affectionate they were; the less they had sex, the less positive feelings they had, said clinical psychologist Anik Debrot, who led the study.
Moments that were experienced as erotic or sexually arousing were equally predictive of positive emotions, Debrot said.
CNN contributor Ian Kerner, a psychotherapist who specializes in sex and couples therapy, agrees with her.
When couples keep the sexual dimension of their relationship alive and intact it leads to an overall warming of the relationship, which includes more touching and non-sexual affection, as well as a higher level of respect for the partner, he said.
Improves cognitive abilities
Studies show that maintaining an active sex life into old age protects and even improves the cognitive functioning of our brain.
Analyzing data from the English Longitudinal Study of Aging, British scientists found that sexually active men between the ages of 50 and 89 had increased cognitive function, as measured by number sequencing and word recall, even after adjusting for quality of life, loneliness, depression and physical activity.
Women had the same benefit from sex for memory, but not for number sequence.
Both men and women who were more sexually active performed better on tests than those who had less sex.
In a follow-up study, researchers found that having sex at least once a week was highly predictive of improvements in cognitive functioning, particularly verbal fluency.
Limits pain
Studies have found that sexual activity can reduce menstrual cramps, chronic back and leg pain, and even migraines.
Orgasm researcher Barry Komisaruk points to research that says the sensation produced by vaginal stimulation has a powerful analgesic effect.
In a study Komisaruk wrote with sex researcher Beverly Whipple, who coined the term "G-spot," they found that the pressure of pleasurable vaginal stimulation increased pain tolerance by 40 percent. When women experience orgasm, their pain tolerance increases by almost 75 percent.
Scientists attribute this to hormones released during sex, such as endorphins, which block pain and stress, and oxytocin, a hormone that helps bond mother and baby and has pain-relieving properties.
Training
Experts also point out the benefits of exercise that come from sex: stretching of muscles and tendons, bending of joints and acceleration of breathing, heart rate and blood pressure, which in a healthy man or woman can give the body additional energy, reports the Ordinance.
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