Health: Sexual Healing

But a spot of action between the sheets is not just a hit on the ego front. There is evidence sex can do anything from burn calories and reduce the risks of colds and flu to give you better bladder control, healthier teeth, improved sense of smell and a happier prostate. It could even help you live longer.

"If you can maintain your sexual experience throughout your life it does seem to have health gains," says Sue Maxwell, a sex therapist with Relationships Scotland. "Most important are the benefits in terms of mood: you're less likely to be depressed. "

Women who keep sexually active as they get older tend to experience fewer menopausal symptoms, while couples are more able to weather stressful, life-changing circumstances if they have an active, intimate private life.

However, she draws attention to the rise in sexually-transmitted diseases among the over-50s, and adds: "It's all very well to say have lots of fun but if you have no awareness of STIs and HIV, it can be very unsafe."

www.relationships-scotland.org.uk

No stress

In a study by the University of the West of Scotland in Hamilton, 46 people were asked to give a speech to an aggressive audience. Stress hormones and blood pressure were measured before and after and it was found that those who had sex in the two weeks before the speech had markedly lower levels of both. It's worthwhile noting, too, that this was only the case with boy/girl 'traditional' intercourse and not with other sexual activities. "Evolution is not politically correct," said the university's Professor Stuart Brody. "Evolution strongly rewards behaviours that increase the likelihood of successful gene propagation, and only one behaviour is potentially reproductive."

Fit for purpose

In just half an hour of energetic rumpy-pumpy you can burn around 150 calories. OK, so it might not be as much as you'd run off on the treadmill, but it's an awful lot more fun. According to the Kinsey Institute, we lose an average of five pounds every year due to sex alone.

Looking good

Cosmetic benefits of coitus include glossy hair and glowing skin, a result of increased oestrogen production. Semen, meanwhile, contains zinc, calcium and other minerals proven to fight tooth decay and kissing encourages the production of saliva, which lowers the acid levels in the mouth. All of which is good news for our teeth. Then, once it's all over, the hormone prolactin, which causes stem cells in the brain to develop new neurons in its smell centre, is given a boost.

Gland all over

Men who have had intercourse more than 3,000 times in their lifetimes can congratulate themselves: they have halved their risk of prostate cancer, according to a study in Minnesota. And researchers at the National Cancer Institute found men who have 21 or more ejaculations every month are a third less likely to develop the disease, compared to those who ejaculate four to seven times a month. The reasons for this are not altogether clear, though some experts believe men who have more sex get rid of more potentially carcinogenic products in their semen.

Boost immunity

Sex could even help keep you from getting sick. Students at Wilkes University in Pennsylvania who made love once or twice a week were found to have significantly higher levels of an antibody called immunoglobulin A, which protects against colds and flu.

Keep it up

A ten-year study of 2,500 men aged between 45 and 59 by the University of Bristol found those who had two or more orgasms a week were 50 per cent less likely to die from coronary heart disease than those who got busy less than once a month. So if you want to ward off heart attacks and stroke, the recommended frequency is three times a week for at least 20 minutes. Now you know.

Go with the flow

Never mind cosmetic surgery. A healthy sex life could help you look ten years younger, according to a study by the Royal Edinburgh Hospital. That's because it boosts bloodflow to your organs and delivers lots of health-giving oxygen and hormones to your system. For his book Secrets of the Superyoung, Dr David Weeks, a clinical neuropsychologist at the Royal Edinburgh, interviewed 3,500 European and American men and women over the course of ten years. He found a vigorous sex life was the second most important determinant of how young a person looked. Only physical activity was more important in keeping ageing at bay.

This article was first published in Scotland on Sunday, August 1, 2010