Exciting news, everyone — for both the young and the old: According to new research published in the Archives of Sexual Behavior, your sex life gets significantly better after the age of 50. If you're either nearing or already over 50, you're probably rejoicing; and if you're younger? "But wait!", you might be saying. "I'm not anywhere near half a century old yet. How is this good news?" Easy: It gives you something to look forward to. It'll only get better with time, so if you're already having awesome sex now... well, just imagine how amazing it will be by the time you hit 50. If that's not a reason to go out and celebrate, I don't know what is.
There's just one catch: The study specifically focused on married sex, so the news may not be quite as exciting for those who aren't planning on tying the knot. Researchers surveyed 1,656 adults and found that 65 percent had sex three times a month in their first year of marriage — a figure which dropped to 40 percent after 25 years of marriage, and again to 35 percent when both partners hit 50 years of age. However, this number went back up to 42 percent when adults turned 65 and kept increasing with age. I, for one, will be able to sleep easy knowing this information.
This study concludes that married sex gets better with over time because of this: As adults age and move in different directions or places from their old friends, they start to spend more time at home with their significant others, thereby increasing the frequency (and possibly the quality) of sex. But sex and intimacy aren't the only things that gets better with age. Here are four other things that get better or increase in quality over time:
1. Wine
Everyone knows that the older the wine, the more robust, long-lasting, and warm the flavor is. This is due to drastic chemical transformations that take place within grape stems, seeds, and skins that can only happen the longer you let them sit.
2. Allergies
If you suffer from environmental allergies like sensitivity to pollen, dust, or cats, there is research that shows the older you get, the better your allergy gets. While the science behind it remains unclear, some researchers theorize that it's because you have more control over your environment and how you interact with it as you get older. This gives you less of a chance to be exposed to antigens or other things that might trigger allergic reactions.
3. Leather Shoes
Ever broken in a pair of Doc Martens? If you have (or have broken in any other real leather shoe), you'll know that the process is the absolute worst. For the first three weeks, you get constant blisters, your feet are always sore, and even your knees and calves hurt. Thank goodness your shoes stop hurting and start feeling magnificent after you've worn them for bit — and hey, guess what? The nicer leather, the more likely it is that your shoe will age well and maintain itself. How's that for an investment?
4. Sleep
Having to sleep when you're a kid can feel like a chore. The world is so full of excitement and stuff to do, why would you ever want to sleep? But as you grow older and your responsibilities increase to the point that sleep is novel, hard to come by, or even difficult to actually do, getting a good night's sleep can be one of the best feelings there is.
So lets not knock things just because they're old... sometimes the older it is (or the older you are), the better it is.
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