New Research: Men With Low Libido Are Nearly Twice As Likely To Die Prematurely

A Japanese study has investigated the link between libido and mortality. It showed that men who have less sex drive are 1.82 times more likely to die prematurely. No link was found in women.

The study was conducted at Yamagata University in Japan and was published earlier this month in the scientific journal PLOS ONE. The study followed more than 20,000 people – 8,558 men and 12,411 women – for more than a decade. The aim was to investigate links between sex drive and death from various causes, such as cardiovascular disease and cancer. Surveys and medical records of the participants were used for this purpose

 In the past, several studies have been conducted into a connection between sex and mental health. But this is the first major study to focus on the link between libido and physical health.

Ikagai

The results of the study showed that men over the age of 40 with low sex drive were 1.94 times more likely to die from cancer and 1.36 times more likely to die from heart disease. Participants with a lower libido were often older, drank more, had diabetes, laughed less, often had psychological problems and/or a lower level of education. 

However, these are not the only reasons for the higher risk of premature death. The researchers filtered out variables such as smoking, alcohol consumption, body mass index (BMI), underlying health problems and exercise from the results and still saw the same final conclusion. “Based on these results, we speculate that maintaining sexual interest may be related to positive mental well-being and ‘ikigai,'” the researchers say. The latter is a Japanese term for having a life worth living.

Having more sex has many benefits. For example, it ensures better sleep, stimulates the immune system, reduces anxiety and depression and helps to keep your heart healthy.

Women?

Remarkably, the study found no causal relationship between high or low libido and mortality in women. So far, there is no explanation as to why this is so.

 It is also important to note that all the participants in the study were Japanese who then came from the same region in Japan. According to the scientists, further research is needed to be really sure that these results also apply to the rest of the world.