New research suggests the elderly may be more interested in sex than commonly believed. A study in the Annals of Internal Medicine shows that about one-third of Australian men in their 70s, 80s, and 90s are sexually active and some wish to have sex more often. WebMD reports:

“Although there is still a widely held perception that older people are not interested in sex, our study shows that this is not the case -- even in the tenth decade, one in five men still considered sex to be an important part of their life,” study researcher Zoe Hyde, MPH, of the Western Australian Centre for Health and Ageing in Crawley, Australia.

Of 3,274 men aged 75 to 95 who were interviewed three times over a 13-year time period, 2,783 provided information about their sex lives and had their hormone levels measured. Almost one-third of these men were still sexually active, which was defined as having at least one sexual encounter in the past year. Sex frequency decreased with advancing age, with men in their 70s having more sex than their counterparts in their 90s, the study showed.

Nearly half of the sexually active seniors in the study said they would like to have more sex, more often.

Health Problems and Sexual Activity

Barriers to sexual activity among seniors include advancing age, lower levels of the male sex hormone testosterone, physical limitations, medication side effects, and diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure, which can cause erectile dysfunction.

“Men's health problems appear to be the main reason that older heterosexual couples cease to be sexually active, though lack of a partner and the health status of the partner are also important factors,” says Hyde. “Chronic disease, particularly diabetes, appears to be a major barrier to staying sexually active.”

The men in the new study may be healthier than men in other populations or communities, which could affect the findings. Still, doctors need to take sex lives into consideration when prescribing medications and counseling their older patients, Hyde says.

“Given that many older people want to remain sexually active as they age, clinicians should warn patients when prescribing drugs that have sexual side effects and should suggest alternative agents where appropriate,” she says.

Doctors should not assume that sexual side effects don't matter to older people, she says.

“Currently, the best advice for men wanting to remain sexually active as they age would be to get sufficient physical activity, eat a nutritious and well-balanced diet, maintain a healthy weight, and stop smoking,” she says. All of these lifestyle factors can help people remain healthy longer.

Testosterone Levels

The study did find that testosterone levels were related to sexual activity.