Researchers: Men want sex until almost dead

By George Mathis

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The British have quite a history at getting to the bottom of things. Sherlock Holmes is the world's most famous detective and Scotland Yard, though it sounds like a cricket field, is actually an organization of highly trained spelunkers of truth.

Now, researchers have concluded men want sex until they are almost dead, according to a report in the British Medical Journal.

The study states men are more likely to be interested in sex than women, and the disparity between genders grows with age.  The difference is  greatest among the 75- to 85-year-old group: 38.9 percent of men compared with 16.8 percent of women in that age group were sexually active, according to the study.

The study also seems to conclude that a happy sex life can help you live longer.

Among the findings:

* Men and women reporting very good or excellent health were more likely to be sexually active compared with their peers in poor or fair health.

* Among sexually active people, good health was also significantly associated with frequent sex (once or more weekly).

* People in very good or excellent health were 1.5 to 1.8 times more likely to report an interest in sex than those in poorer health.

* At age 30, sexually active life expectancy was 34.7 more years for men and 30.7 more years for women compared with 14.9 to 15.3 more years for men and 10.6 more years for women at age 55.

* At age 55, men in very good or excellent health on average gained five to seven years of sexually active life compared with their peers in poor or fair health. Women in very good or excellent health gained three to six years compared with women in poor or fair health.

* Sexually active life expectancy was longer for men, but men lost more years of sexually active life as a result of poor health than women.

Time.com has a complete write-up for those itching to learn more.

* Read an abstract of the study.