Sex may be associated with dewy youth and high velocity hormones, but there's a lot to be said for the pleasure that only comes with age. Although mainstream media mostly depicts young folks having all the hot and heavy sessions, multiple scientific studies which delve into women's perceptions of their sex lives have shown that older women have better sex.
The link between youthfulness and sex is of course biological. Apparently there is a purpose for our animal urges beyond pleasure, but let's be real, very few people have sex solely for procreation. And once you move past that pesky link between fertility and sexuality, it leaves a lifetime to sample and savor all the different ways to experience sensual connection, regardless of whether you're 21 or 51. Mature, sex-positive ladies from Samantha Jones to Betty Dodson have demonstrated that age ain't nothing but a number, and the higher that number is, the more likely you are to know your way around the bedroom (or the bathroom, backyard, beach, etc.) and know how to work with what you've got to reap maximum rewards.
Here's what science has to say about age and sex — and why women are often happier with their sex lives as time goes on:
1
Quality Becomes More Important Than Quantity
Human sex hormones are undoubtedly more bountiful in youth and can inspire us to hit it early and often, but who says quantity is a marker of quality? A recent study published in the Journal of Sexual Research analyzed data on the sex lives of 6,278 people, and found that those who were less focused on sexual quantity and more interested in sexual quality reported heating up the sheets as they aged in a major way. Although researchers found that sexual satisfaction can decrease with age, if the health and quality of a person's relationship remained relatively the same over time, their sexual quality increased.
2
Your Self-Confidence Increases
With social and mainstream media pushing a bevy of filtered, airbrushed, and homogenous bods on us 24/7, it's easy to see why anyone would have a hard time accepting themselves enough to be shame-free in the sack. However, a 2010 study found that self-esteem continues to increase as we age, which might partially explain why 85 per cent of sexually active women ages 50 to 69 reported being satisfied with their sex lives, and 90 per cent of sexually active women over 79 were stoked about their erotic antics. The older you get, the more likely you are to realize it's very necessary to be feeling yourself before you looking to feel someone else.
3
Your Orgasmic Capacity Increases
Admittedly, orgasms aren't the end all be all in sex, but a survey of over 42,000 women by OkCupid found that women in their 20s are more likely to have difficulty climaxing than women in their 40s. The more you know your body, the more you can harness your orgasmic capacity, and apparently, getting off just gets better as you get older.
4
Your Sexual Confidence Increases
A 2016 study of women between the ages of 45 and 60 affirmed that sex gets better with age because sexual confidence increases. Many subjects reported having not-so-stellar sex lives in the past, but because they felt self-assured enough to finally take matters into their own hands and use lube, new positions, or alternate approaches to pleasure, sex in their older age was reportedly superior to what it was in years past.
5
You Become More Sexually Adventurous
Practice makes perfect, as they say, and there's nothing like doing it over and over to finally master the kind of sex that works for you. Once you've tried all the vanilla stuff, it's makes sense that some would venture out into untested waters. As one Canadian survey of 2,400 people revealed, folks between the ages of 40 and 59 are more likely to experiment in bed.
Whether that's a generational thing, or something we can all look forward to remains to be seen. (Let's hope it's the latter.)
