Sexual activity is a key part of a healthy lifestyle. It is often linked to improved sleep, intimacy and self-esteem.
A healthy sex life generally helps to boost the heart, lower blood pressure and increase the body immunity.
Aside from reproduction, pleasure, and intimacy, sex seems to have a positive impact on many life areas, including work, physical and cognitive performance, marriage, and happiness into our senior years. Sex may also have a positive effect on certain organs and conditions, as well as a preventive effect on some diseases.
According to research, there are physical and psychological health benefits of sex which are listed below
1) Improves immunity
Participating in sex one to two times per week appears to be the optimum frequency to boost the immune system, according to research published in Psychological Reports.
Scientists can test how tough our immune systems are by measuring levels of an antibody called immunoglobulin A (IgA) in saliva and mucosal linings.
Participating in sex one to two times per week appears to be the optimum frequency to boost the immune system, according to research published in Psychological Reports.
Study authors Carl Charnetski, from Wilkes University in Pennsylvania, and his colleague Frank Brennan found that people who had sex once or twice per week had a 30 percent increase in IgA. However, the same results were not seen in individuals who had sex more or less frequently.
2) Good for the heart
Physical activities that exercise the heart are good for your health, and this includes sex. Being sexually aroused increases the heart rate, with the number of beats per minute peaking during orgasm.
Men who have regular sex are 45 percent less likely to develop heart disease.
Men, in particular, have been shown to benefit from the effect of sex on the heart.
A study published in the American Journal of Cardiology, involving men in their 50s, suggested that men who have sex at least twice per week have a 45 percent reduced risk of heart disease, compared with men who have sex less frequently.
3) Lowers blood pressure
Research conducted by Michigan State University and published in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior found that sex in later years might reduce the risk of high blood pressure – at least for women.
Women in the study aged between 57 and 85 years who found sex pleasurable or satisfying were less likely to have hypertension. However, male study participants who had sex once per week or more were twice as likely to experience heart problems than men who were sexually inactive.
In another study published in Behavioral Medicine, researchers found that the act of hugging can help a person to maintain a healthy blood pressure.
According to the American Heart Association, high blood pressure increases the risk of heart attack and stroke and can also affect your sex life. High blood pressure has an impact on blood flow throughout the body and can prevent enough blood flowing to the pelvis.
