Penn State research has shown that low sexual satisfaction in middle age may be a warning sign of future cognitive decline.
The study followed the relationships between erectile function, sexual satisfaction, and cognition in men. Researchers found that losses in sexual satisfaction and erectile performance were associated with future memory loss.
About the study
The study surveyed data from 818 males who participated in the Vietnam Era Twin Study of Aging. The participant’s data was assessed for a 12-year period, from age 56 to 68. The researchers studied the participants’ cognitive changes during these years.
Memory function and sexual function
The researchers examined how people’s memory and sexual function changed together over time.
Martin Sliwinski, professor of human development and family studies at Penn State and co-author on the study, said, “What was unique about our approach is that we measured memory function and sexual function at each point in the longitudinal study, so we could look at how they changed together over time, What we found connects to what scientists are beginning to understand about the link between life satisfaction and cognitive performance.”
Factors under examination
The researchers studied the relationship between physical changes like microvascular alterations affecting penile function, and psychological changes like poorer sexual satisfaction, to see how they relate to cognition (the mental action of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses).
How someone feels about their sex life
Researchers also stressed on the importance of sexual satisfaction and its physical and mental impact on our health.
Riki Slayday, a doctoral candidate at Penn State and lead author on the study, said, “Research on sexual health has historically focused on quantifiable facets of sexuality like the number of sexual partners or frequency of sexual activity; what we were interested in is the perception of that activity, how someone feels about their sex life, and how that influences cognitive function because multiple people could be in the same situation physically but experience completely different levels of satisfaction.”
What research indicated
The researchers found that increases or decreases in erectile function and sexual satisfaction were associated with concurrent increases or decreases in cognitive function. It is important to note that these associations survived adjustment for demographic and health factors.
