Research is showing that Americans are staying sexually active in their 60s, 70s, and even 80s, reports the December 2010 issue of the Harvard Health Letter.

The article sums up findings from two important surveys investigating the sexuality of older Americans. Indiana University researchers reported earlier this year that 20% to 30% of long-lived Americans are sexually active into their 80s. And a University of Chicago survey published several years ago showed that half of Americans continue to engage in sexual activity well into their 70s.

The Health Letter offers several possible explanations for sexuality extending later and later into life. People are staying healthy longer, and the University of Chicago study found a close association between good health and sexual activity among older people. The advent of erectile dysfunction drugs has helped many men stay sexually active. And it is the baby boom generation, the group that came of age as sexual mores were changing, that is getting old. 

On other hand, there’s no denying that sexual activity does subside with age. In addition to biological factors, social arrangements can hinder activity; older people, especially women, often end up single when a spouse or partner dies.

Here are a few of the main points from the research:

• Sexual activity declines with age, though a significant minority (especially men) defies the trend.
• The studies show that older women—even in their 60s—are less sexually active than men of the same age. The gender gap widens as people get older. Gender differences in the amount of sexual activity that occurs outside of a relationship contribute to the disparity.
• At least half of seniors in the research reported having at least one bothersome sexual problem.

Read the full-length article: “Sex in the second half”