Does Sex Increase Heart Complications For Men?

Could intense orgasms be harmful for the heart?

Men have always held it in high regard that their little swimmers can swim until they die of old age, compared to women, who have biological clocks ticking away as they get older. While the sperm can swim well into a man's eighties, it doesn't mean that it's healthy for them to have sex at that age. A new study showed that having lots of enjoyable sex as they age could put them at a greater risk for heart complications.

The study, which was published in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior, looked at 2,204 people between the ages 57 to 85, they were each interviewed twice, five years apart, to better understand how sex impacts health later in life. They found that those who reported having sex at least weekly are more likely to report experiencing heart problems when interviewed again a few years later, compared to those who are not sexually active.

Study author Hui Liu, an associate professor of sociology from the Michigan State University said in a statement that "Older men who found sex with their partner extremely pleasurable or satisfying had higher risk of cardiovascular events than men who did not feel so."

Women, on the other hand, did not experience such complications despite regular sexual activities. In fact, women who reported being satisfied with their sex lives had a lower risk of high blood pressure years later, compared to those who stopped having sex as they aged.

Still, Time noted that the study only found a link between heart problems and sex, and that the study is not definitive. To further understand the benefits of sex later in life, it is still important for men and women to have a conversation with their physicians regarding health and sexuality.