The finding, by researchers from the University of Manchester and NatCen Social Research, show that more than half of men and almost a third of women over the age of 70 reported being sexually active. What’s more, a third of 7,000 men and women surveyed report having frequent sex — at least twice a month.
 

The study, published in the American academic journal Archives of Sexual Behavior, is the first of its kind on sexual health among people over the age of 80. Contrary to popular misconceptions, it finds that overall health and conflicting partnership factors were more closely linked to decreasing sexual activity and functioning, rather than simply increasing age.
 

"We hope our findings improve public health by countering stereotypes and misconceptions about late-life sexuality, and offer older people a reference against which they may relate their own experiences and expectations,” said lead researcher David Lee, M.D.
 

"Our ongoing research is also highlighting the diversity of late-life sexualities, and trying to impose youthful norms of sexual health on older people would be over-simplistic and even unhelpful. It is however important that health professionals act on this and are more open about discussing sexual health with older people — it can't simply be assumed to be an irrelevance."