1. Helps Keep Your Immune System Humming
“Sexually active people take fewer sick days,” says
Yvonne K. Fulbright, PhD a sexual health expert.
People who have sex have higher levels of what
defends your body against germs, viruses, and other intruders. Researchers at
Wilkes University in Pennsylvania found that college students who had sex once
or twice a week had higher levels of the a certain antibody compared to
students who had sex less often.
You should still do all the other things that make
your immune system happy, such as:
Stay active.
Get enough sleep.
Keep up with your vaccinations.
Use a condom if you don’t know both of
your STD statuses.
Longing for a more lively sex life? “Having sex will
make sex better and will improve your libido,” says Lauren Streicher, MD.
She is an assistant clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at
Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago.
For women, having sex ups vaginal lubrication, blood flow,
and elasticity, she says, all of which make sex feel better and help you crave
more of it.
A strong pelvic floor is important for avoiding incontinence,
something that will affect about 30% of women at some point in their lives.
Good sex is like a workout for your pelvic
floor muscles. When you have an orgasm, it causes contractions in
those muscles, which strengthens them.
Research suggests a link between sex and lower blood
pressure, says Joseph J. Pinzone, MD. He is CEO and medical director of Amai
Wellness.
“There have been many studies,” he says. “One
landmark study found that sexual intercourse specifically (not masturbation)
lowered systolic blood pressure.” That's the first number on your blood
pressure test.
5. Counts as Exercise
“Sex is a really great form of exercise,”
Pinzone says. It won’t replace the treadmill, but it counts for something.
Sex uses about five calories per minute, four more
calories than watching TV. It gives you a one-two punch: It bumps up your heart
rate and uses various muscles.
So get busy! You may even want to clear your
schedule to make time for it on a regular basis. “Like with exercise,
consistency helps maximize the benefits,” Pinzone says.
6. Lowers Heart Attack Risk
A good sex life is good for your heart. Besides
being a great way to raise your heart rate, sex helps keep your estrogen and testosterone levels
in balance.
“When either one of those is low you begin to get
lots of problems, like osteoporosis and even heart disease,”
Pinzone says.
Having sex more often may help. During one study,
men who had sex at least twice a week were half as likely to die of heart
disease as men who had sex rarely.
7. Lessens Pain
Before you reach for an aspirin, try for an
orgasm.
“Orgasm can block pain,” says Barry R. Komisaruk,
PhD, a distinguished service professor at Rutgers, the State University of New
Jersey. It releases a hormone that helps raise your pain threshold.
Stimulation without orgasm can also do the trick.
“We’ve found that vaginal stimulation can block chronic back and leg pain,
and many women have told us that genital self-stimulation can reduce menstrual cramps,
arthritic pain, and in some cases even headache,” Komisaruk says.
8. May Make Prostate Cancer Less Likely
Going for the gusto may help ward off prostate
cancer.
Men who ejaculated frequently (at least 21 times a
month) were less likely to get prostate cancer during one study,
which was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
You don’t need a partner to reap this benefit:
Sexual intercourse, nocturnal emission, and masturbation were all part of the
equation.
It's not clear that sex was the only reason that
mattered in that study. Lots of factors affect cancer risk. But more
sex won’t hurt.
9. Improves Sleep
You may nod off more quickly after sex, and for good
reason.
“After orgasm, the hormone prolactin is
released, which is responsible for the feelings of relaxation and sleepiness"
after sex, says Sheenie Ambardar, MD. She is a psychiatrist in West
Hollywood, Calif.
10. Eases Stress
Being close to your partner can soothe stress and anxiety.
Ambardar says touching and hugging can release your
body's natural “feel-good hormone.” Sexual arousal releases a brain chemical
that revs up your brain’s pleasure and reward system.
Sex and intimacy can boost your
self-esteem and happiness, too, Ambardar says. It’s not only a prescription for
a healthy life, but a happy one.
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