Nice correlation

The preservation of intellectual abilities was associated with sexual activity

Ilya Vedmedenko, Naked Science

Researchers have found a relationship between the frequency of sex and maintaining a clear mind. For people who can boast of sexual activity in adulthood and old age, intellectual difficulties are less characteristic.

Various studies have repeatedly shown that cognitive abilities in people in adulthood and old age are closely related to their sexual activity. Now scientists from Oxford University and Coventry University have decided to consider this issue in more detail by diversifying the tests. The conclusions of the experts are presented in the publication The Journals of Gerontology: Series B (Frequent Sexual Activity Predicts Specific Cognitive Abilities in Older Adults), and a brief overview is available in the Birmingham Mail.

The study involved 73 people: 45 women and 28 men. Their age ranged from 50 to 83 years. They answered the question about how often they had sex over the past twelve months. In addition, men and women passed standard tests that are usually used to measure brain activity. They, in particular, affected memory, attention and vocabulary.

As part of one of the tests, the subjects had to name as many animals as possible in 60 seconds. Also, the volunteers had to name the maximum number of words beginning with the letter F. Visual perception tests were also conducted, in which, in particular, volunteers had to draw a clock face from memory.

The results showed that people who have sex more often pass verbal and visual tests more successfully. The highest correlation was found in the case of verbal fluency tests.  Meanwhile, attention and memory were not associated with sexual activity in adulthood or old age. In the future, scientists intend to find out what role dopamine and oxytocin play in all this.

In general, experts are satisfied with the results obtained. "Every time we do another piece of research, we are getting closer to understanding why this relationship exists at all, what are the underlying mechanisms and whether there is a causal relationship between sexual activity and cognitive abilities in older people," says Hayley Wright from Coventry University. "People don't like to think that older people have sex, but we need to challenge this concept on a social level and see what impact sexual activity can have on people aged 50 and older, in addition to the known consequences for sexual health and general well–being," the researcher adds.

Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru  14.09.2017