Contemporary Sexuality - August 2008 - (Page 5) However, a lower risk was observed in the highest category of ejaculation frequency.” In addition, “when the entire range of ejaculation frequency was analyzed as a continuous variable … each increment of three ejaculations per week across a lifetime was associate with a 15 percent decrease in risk of total prostate cancer,” Leitzmann wrote. Despite those suggestions that frequent sex might reduce the risk of prostate cancer, the researchers concluded that wasn’t the case, writing, “higher ejaculation frequency was not related to increased risk of prostate cancer.” Breast cancer Scientists also have other theories about how sex might decrease the risk of disease, including breast cancer. Timothy Murrell, MD, wondered about “The Potential for Oxytocin (OT) to Prevent Breast Cancer: A Hypothesis” in a 1995 article in Breast Cancer Research and Treatment. In his abstract, Murrell wrote, “The regular production of oxytocin (OT) from nipple stimulation would cause contraction of the myoeptihelial cells, relieving acinal gland distension and aiding in the active elimination of carcinogenic fluid from the breast.” This could happen during breast feeding, breast pump stimulation or sexual activity. Three studies have examined this possible link between sexual activity and breast cancer, including a 1989 study of 51 French women with breast cancer. Compared to a control group of 95 females, the women with breast cancer were more likely to be unpartnered and engage in sex less than once per month. Another small study — this one focusing on 23 Greek males — concluded that there may be “an inverse relationship between frequency of orgasm during adulthood and the incidence of breast cancer,” wrote Whipple. Meanwhile, Dwight T. Janerich, DDS, MPH, theorized that pregnancy could protect women from breast cancer. Whipple describes the complex science: “A fetal antigen hypothesis proposes that a fetus inherits breast cancer genes from a male partner. These genes, [according to Janerich], indirectly provide a protective effect to the mother via immune response.” Mary Anne Rossing, PhD, DVM, a researcher at the University of Washington’s Fred Hutchinson Cancer Researcher Center, tested this theory. In a study published in Epidemiology in 2007, Rossing and co-authors wrote, “Increasing lifetime number of male sexual partners was associated with decreasing risk of breast cancer.” Other health benefits Many other studies suggest sexual experiences have other positive physical, mental and August 2008 Vol. 42, No. 8 | www.aasect.org emotional benefits. Masturbating helps many women fall asleep. People who look seven to 12 years younger than their biological age — the socalled “superyoung” — had more sex more frequently than their older looking counterparts. Sexually active men and women also eat better and exercise more than others. The research of AASECT member Gina Ogden, PhD, seems to indicate that sexually active people also receive non-physical benefits. In “Spiritual Passion and Compassion in Late-Life Sexual Relationships,” published in the Electronic Journal of Human Sexuality in 2001, Ogden surveyed 3,810 people about their sex lives. About one-fifth of the respondents were age 50 and older. “One of the major findings of this survey is that sexual and spiritual experience become more integrated as respondents grow older,” Ogden wrote. “Another major finding is that integrating sexual and spiritual experience contributes to … overall personal and relational health.” Sex also seems to make us happier. In a study of 4,000 women, there were “strong associations between sexual interest and sense of well-being.” Among 77 disabled people, those with active sex lives were more likely to have a “higher quality of life.” And in their classic text, “Sex in America: A Definitive Survey,” University of Chicago researcher Edward Laumann, PhD, and coauthors, discovered a simple truth: People with rich sex lives tend to be content. “Personal happiness is associated with the frequency of sexual activity and orgasm — especially among women,” summarized Whipple. One would think that the evidence about sexual activity and well-being, while rarely causal, would prompt more academic research. So far, that hasn’t happened. In the U.S., the problem might center on a lack of funding and viewing sexuality through a negative lens, rather than in more positive terms. Another factor might simply be the age and interests of researchers. The English epidemiologists Davey Smith put it this way: “One barrier to the study of frequency of sexual intercourse as an exposure may be that observational epidemiology tends to be conducted by middle aged or ageing researchers. The fading imaginations of researchers — assumed to be shared by their subjects — renders the whole area apparently uninteresting. “This is an instance of a more general phenomenon of epidemiologists studying what interests other epidemiologists, and not always being drawn to area of more general public concern.” — Todd Melby Read the paper at www.plannedparenthood.org/ resources/research-papers/sexual-expression6358.htm Gina Ogden Photo by Martha Stewart, marthapix.com “Another major finding is that integrating sexual and spiritual experience contributes to … overall personal and relational health.” — Gina Ogden Contemporary Sexuality 5 http://marthapix.com http://www.plannedparenthood.org/resources/research-papers/sexual-expression-6358.htm http://www.plannedparenthood.org/resources/research-papers/sexual-expression-6358.htm http://www.plannedparenthood.org/resources/research-papers/sexual-expression-6358.htm http://www.aasect.org
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