Older Adults Are Active Despite Increased
Sexual Problems with Age
A majority of older Americans are sexually active and view intimacy
as an important part of life, despite a high rate of ?bothersome? sexual
problems, according to a new report in the Aug. 23, 2007, issue
of The New England Journal of Medicine. The findings come
from the National Social Life, Health and Aging Project, research
supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The findings
shed new light on the intimate social relationships and health
of people ages 57 to 85, informing health care providers and patients
about sexual norms in the older U.S. population.
The project is the first comprehensive, nationally representative
survey to assess the prevalence of sexual activity, behaviors and
problems in relation to health status among people in their late
50s and beyond. The study provides information about a number of
important aspects of health and sexuality with age, including sexual
problems in relation to specific chronic health conditions such
as arthritis, diabetes and hypertension; relationships between
physical health problems or limitations generally and sexual activity;
and physician communication about sexuality at older ages. Physical
health, the researchers found, was more strongly associated with
many sexual problems than age alone.
The study has implications for health education efforts to prevent
sexually transmitted disease in older people. Although data from
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests stability
in HIV diagnoses among Americans aged 50 and older, the number
of older people diagnosed with AIDS and living with HIV is increasing,
as individuals who were infected with HIV at younger ages are living
longer before progressing to AIDS. However, sexual activity among
older adults poses risks for new cases of HIV, as approximately
15 percent of newly diagnosed HIV infections are among Americans
over age 50.
Led by Stacy Tessler Lindau, M.D., who conducted the study with
Linda Waite, Ph.D., and others at the University of Chicago, the
research was funded primarily by the National Institute on Aging
(NIA), a component of NIH. Additional funding came from NIH?s Office
of Research on Women?s Health, Office of AIDS Research and Office
of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research and from private-sector
sources. Data collection was supported by the National Opinion
Research Center at the University of Chicago. Georgeanne E. Patmios
of NIA?s Behavioral and Social Research Program is program officer
for the project.
?Despite the aging of the population, little had been known about
the intimate lives of older adults,? said NIA Director Richard
J. Hodes, M.D. ?This study expands our knowledge by reporting,
on a national scale, data about sexual functioning and health among
older adults.?