DATING & RELATIONSHIPS
Can Sex Really Prevent Dementia?
Y
ou don’t need to be a scientist to know that sex makes you feel good. But thanks to a growing body of research, we’ve now got proof that sex is good for you, too. One of the most exciting findings from the past few years is that sex is linked to better cognitive function— that is, how well our brain can process and make sense of information. This has been widely interpreted to mean that sex can help prevent dementia. Staving off brain disease by having fun in the bedroom? It sounds too good to be true. Monica Karpinski is a writer and editor focused on women’s health, sex, and relationships. She is the founder of women’s health media platform The Femedic 64 • JANUARY 2023
But is it? Well, yes and no. The paper responsible for much of this buzz was written in 2016 by Hayley Wright and Rebecca Jenks from Coventry University. From survey responses of 6,833 adults aged 50-89 years, they found that sexually active folks scored higher on number sequencing (inputting the number that’s missing in a sequence) and memory recall tests than those who weren’t. Interestingly, among those who did have sex men scored higher on both tests, whereas women only had better scores when it came to memory. Per the study authors, this could be because different bodies respond to chemicals released during pleasure in particular ways, but we can’t say for sure. These tests are measures of cognitive function. When this dips, there’s an increased risk of dementia developing at some point. A year later, the same researchers (plus their colleague Nele Demeyere) replicated the results by surveying 73 people aged 50-83. This time, they