Contributed by Ron Gara| 29 May, 2005 01:17 GMT
There has been a 'reawakening' for many women, thanks to their male partners' use of drugs. 'We found that women are pleased with their mates' newfound ardor, debunking the cultural stereotype that older women aren't welcoming of intimate and sexual relationships.'
Sex is still a big deal for the "free love" generation, judging from a new report by
AARP.
The organization's latest survey, "Sexuality at Midlife and Beyond," confirms that relationships and sexuality remain at least as important -- if not more so -- than six years ago, when the previous study was released.
The 2004 research focuses on almost 1,700 adults ages 45 and older, measuring attitudes and other factors affecting their health, sexuality and quality of life.
It offers frank viewpoints and revelations of women and men ages 45-59 (representative of three-quarters of the 78 million Baby Boomers), as well as individuals in their 60's, 70's and older.
More Drugs
What has changed? For starters, there is more use of sex-enhancing drugs and greater openness to speaking to health professionals, AARP notes.
More people now report consulting health professionals than any other single source of information (37% up from 26% in 1999). Books were the
top choice in 1999 and now place second at 30%.
More than twice as many men as in 1999 report ever using some type of drugs or treatments to address problems with sexual performance (22%,
up from 10% in 1999).
More respondents now agree that sexual activity is a critical part of a good relationship -- 60% compared to 55% in 1999.
More Discussion
"If I could highlight one significant change from over the past five years, it would be the greater willingness of midlife and older adults to discuss sex as a health issue with their health professionals," said Linda Fisher, research director at AARP.
"Professionals have long known that sexual dysfunction is not only a major problem for relationships and mental health, but can be a marker of life-threatening physical health issues, especially heart disease," she added.
"We also know that healthy and physically active respondents are generally more satisfied with their sex lives than those with a medical condition.
Thirty-one percent (31%) of men said better health for themselves would increase their satisfaction with their sex life and 23% said better health for their partner would increase their satisfaction," said Fisher.
Traditional Views on Fidelity
And speaking of partners, there has been a "reawakening" for many women. Thanks to their male partners' use of drugs, women in all age groups reported that their own sexual satisfaction was enhanced.
"We found that women are pleased with their mates' newfound ardor, debunking the cultural stereotype that older women aren't welcoming of intimate and sexual relationships," said Hugh Delehanty, editor in chief of AARP The Magazine.
However, despite many respondents' progressive feelings about sex, most remained steadfastly traditional when it came to fidelity. More than 95% of all respondents said that they did not approve of any form of extramarital sex without a partner's consent.
They also agree with their Mom and Dad that today's popular culture puts too much emphasis on sex.
"Although many boomers came of age during the sexual revolution, we shouldn't necessarily see a contradiction in their attitudes toward fidelity," said Delehanty.
"Boomers are open about sex, but, it is important to remember that this survey also found many saying that good spirits, good health, close ties with friends and family, and spiritual well-being were more important to their quality of lives than sex. And marital infidelity often undermines all of these things," Delehanty pointed out.
Bad Sex Better Than Nothing
Other notable findings:
Sixty-three percent (63%) of men and women with partners described themselves as either "extremely satisfied" or "somewhat satisfied" with their sex lives.
Nearly one-third of men and women with partners ranked their sex life somewhere between "yawn" and "bloody awful."
Still, mediocre sex was better than none at all. Almost 40% of men without regular sex partners and 15% of women without regular sex partners rated their sex lives at the bottom of the satisfaction scale.
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