It is a copy paste of an article I received via a text message
Marvin Gaye knew very well what was singing with his "Sexual
healing". Sex seems to be more than a hormonal discharge and some short
moments of pure pleasure. Scientists show that sex is extremely
beneficial for our health, while the lack of an active sex life might
have negative effects. And masturbation is not a solution: blood
prolactin levels in males and females after orgasm is 4 times higher in
both sexes compared with the levels after orgasm from masturbation.
Prolactin counteracts the effects of another hormone, dopamine, booming
during sexual arousal. This explains why orgasm from intercourse is more
satisfying than masturbation and the "recovery period" in men, as high
levels of prolactin induce erectile dysfunction.
But too much sex, can also be harmful: more than thrice a week it can
weaken the immune system, making us vulnerable to infections...
1. Sex is beneficial for both the heart and the blood circulation,
especially in the brain. While having sex, the heart rate goes from 70
beats per minute to 150, a good training for the heart. Having sex
thrice a week decreases the risk of heart attack by 50 %. Also during
the sex intercourses, the breath is deeper, meaning a better
oxygenation.
2. The mental and emotional health balance is clearly tuned by sex.
People who are involuntarily celibate or abstinent and often exhibit
depressive feelings (like anger, frustration, self-doubt, paranoia and
even depression) are driven into this by "missed opportunities", due to
living without having sex.
In fact, in case of light depressions, after having sex the brain
releases endorphins, that decrease stress, inducing a state of euphoria.
It seems also to be something in the sperm contributing to the good
effect on the mood. Researches showed that women whose partners used
condoms were more prone to depression than others. This is supposed to
be linked to prostaglandin, a chemical found in the sperm and absorbed
in the vaginal tract, modulating the woman's mood. Semen appears to act
as an antidepressant in women.
Women who have sex without condoms are also more likely to be victims
of the rebound effect following the breakup of their relationship,
pointing that there is a withdrawal effect that influences
depressiveness when semen exposure stops.
Anyway, protected or not, sex and orgasm do cause a release of
endorphins, the "happiness" brain hormone that 'brings' the good mood.
Even more important is the fact that sex strengthens the bound of the couple, self esteem, positive thinking and optimism.
A 2007 British research proved that sex is better than money in
making you happy, and being sexually active indeed brings a happy life.
But more financial power doesn't bring you more sex.
Sex "enters so strongly (and) positively in happiness equations" that
a higher frequency of sexual contacts from once monthly to once weekly
is similar to the happiness level increase brought by an additional
$50,000 in income for the average American. The happiest individuals
were those getting the most and regular sex: married people, or those
involved in a relationship, who declared 30% more sexual activity than
bachelors. A stable marriage was figured out to bring the same happiness
levels provoked by an extra $100,000 earning annually, while divorce
was equivalent to a happiness decrease of $66,000 each year.
Psychologists already knew that happy people are usually more
sexually active, and many studies confirmed that people who are
depressed have less sex. It is sure that mind and sex fuel each other.
3. Sex eliminates stress. You know the feeling of total relaxation
and calm following a sexual intercourse. A subsequent profound calming
sleep follows, with great effect in combating the stress, and persons
with a regular sex life sleep better and feel better the next day.
4. Sex means softer skin. While having sex, a woman's body doubles
the estrogen level, and this makes her hair shine while the skin becomes
softer.
5. Long term researches showed that regular basis sex increases the
humans' lifespan. For the same age and health, those who had orgasms
more frequently had half the death rate of men who did not have such
frequent orgasms. This could be due to the plummeting stress hormones,
reaction that installs after we have sex. Frequent orgasms (about 100
per year) have been linked to an increase of 3-8 years in a person's
lifespan and a decrease of death risk of 50%.
6. Sweating while having sex cleanse the skin pores, making the skin brighter and decreasing the risk of developing dermatitis.
7. Sex can keep you fit, burning extra-pounds. Quickies of 20 minutes
weekly mean 7 500 calories annually, that's as much as you consume on
120 km (745 mi) of jogging. A sex session can burn about 200 calories.
This is like running 15 minutes on a treadmill!
If this helps, here is a guide on your sex metabolism (
http://members.aol.com/evilsuzie/ia/sexcalories.htm) (however, the following statements have not been scientifically proven...yet):
