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Topics: Sex and Relationships, Women's Health, Health, Life, Explained, Advice, Science, Tyla Exclusive
Rhiannon Ingle
Topics: Sex and Relationships, Women's Health, Health, Life, Explained, Advice, Science, Tyla Exclusive
Scientists have reported on health risks for women who have sex less than once a week.
Researchers at Walden University in Pennsylvania aimed to better understand potential links between sexual activity and overall health risks.
They analysed CDC survey data from 14,542 US adults, covering depression, obesity, ethnicity and sexual activity. Participants reported how often they had vaginal or anal sex over the past year, ranging from none to daily.
Around 95 per cent had sex more than 12 times annually, with 38 per cent reporting at least weekly activity. The team then linked this data to death records up to 2015 using CDC databases and the National Death Index.
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They found that people with both depression and low sexual frequency had a 197 per cent higher risk of death compared to those with depression alone.
Meanwhile, those with depression but higher sexual activity showed fewer harmful effects.
The impact differed by sex as, for women, especially aged 20 to 59, having sex less than once a week was linked to a 70 per cent higher risk of death within five years.
Blood tests suggested a possible reason, as women with lower sexual frequency had higher levels of an inflammation-related protein, while those having sex more than once a week had lower levels and no increased mortality risk.
For men, the pattern flipped as higher sexual frequency was linked to greater mortality risk, with men reporting the most sex showing the highest risk. Researchers noted men with high sexual activity were six times more likely to face increased mortality compared to women.
In short, the study, which was published in the Journal of Psychosexual Health in 2024, suggested sexual activity may play a role in physical and mental health, particularly for women, potentially through effects on inflammation, endorphins, cardiovascular function and blood flow.
A gynaecologist has since shared her thoughts on the study.
In response to the findings, Dr Sima Al Asad, an intimate health expert, exclusively told Tyla: "The evidence is intriguing, but inconclusive and does not establish causation."
She outlined that the majority of the findings are based on observational studies, which shed light on patterns but cannot prove cause and effect.
So, while it seems to be associated with certain health outcomes, the study can't actually claim that less sex causes poorer health.
"It is not simply that sex drives a woman (sexual frequency varies over time); in many cases, the reverse relationship may apply, with underlying health, emotional well-being, and relationship context influencing sexual activity," she outlines.
Dr Sima also notes that several overlapping factors affect both libido and overall health.
These factors can range from stress, mental health, sleep quality, hormonal changes, relationship satisfaction, through to chronic illness and even the side effects of prescription medications.
"Sexual frequency rarely occurs in isolation and can also signal a more generalised physical and emotional state of health of a woman’s overall wellbeing," she adds.
Responding to the 'less than once a week' cutoff point, the women's health expert outlined: "It’s really a research threshold, not a clinically validated standard. These cut-offs are so often used to simplify data analysis, but they do not reflect any guideline-supported or evidence-based threshold.
"There is no 'ideal' frequency by medical standards, and clinical care focuses on wellbeing, satisfaction, and absence of distress rather than frequency."
When asked whether women should be concerned by such findings, Dr Sima replied: "Not in a way that causes anxiousness to exist. The other, more substantive question is whether there’s a discernible response in libido or intimacy that is influencing well-being.
"If so, it seems better to try to tease apart the root causes, physical, emotional, relational; rather than just frequency."
She adds that emotional intimacy is fundamental to wellbeing, noting that frequency alone tells us 'very little' about the quality of a relationship or a woman’s wellbeing.
"Having that strong emotional connection, a sense of safety and worth, a sense of understanding, all correlate more closely with positive health outcomes than frequency alone," the expert highlights.
OK, so what does a 'healthy' sex life look like from a clinical perspective?
Well, the gynaecologist tells Tyla that the best sex life for women is' consensual, comfortable, and congruent with a woman’s own needs and values'.
"That should feel positive, not pressured," she continues. "Clinically, the question we care about much more is whether there was distress, pain (e.g. dyspareunia), or a significant change in sexual function, not whether someone is having sex often."
Dr Sima suggests that women interpret the medical study 'with perspective, not pressure'.
"If something feels wrong, physically or psychologically, on a relationship level, it’s worth a look," she resolves. 'But there is no common number that captures what a healthy sex life looks like.
"Frequency alone is not a clinically meaningful measure of health or wellbeing."
Tyla has reached out to the study's lead author, Dr Srikanta Banerjee, for comment.