The Intimate Lives of the Post-Reproductives: New Research Provides an Interesting Inside Peek

Posted on January 10th, 2010 | In Diabetes, General, Health & Lifestyle

An unprecedented survey of the intimate lives of seniors — defined as “post-reproductives” — has put a new spin on sex in your golden years.

As stereotypes would have it, many assume that intimacy slowly wanes as you age, leaving not much to talk about when it comes to the bedroom habits of the elderly. This is clearly misguided, according to the survey of over 3,000 57- to 75-year-olds, which was published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

“For most people, it’s a shock to hear that people are having sex in their 70s,” said Dr. Barbara Paris, director of geriatrics at Maimonides Medical Center in New York City in a Forbes article.

While it’s true that intimacy does decrease slightly when you reach your 70s and beyond, it does not disappear. In fact, the frequency of seniors’ sex lives is based on the same things as younger people’s — with lack of a partner or health issues among the two most prominent reasons for a slow down.

Everything You’ve Wondered (or Tried Not to Wonder) About Sex and Aging

Why study intimacy in your later years?

“It debunks some myths that sex and old age don’t go together, and it places this in the context of health and health problems,” says Marcia G. Ory, professor of social and behavioral health and director of the Aging and Health Promotion Program at Texas A&M Health Science Center School of Rural Public Health.

Not surprisingly, those who reported being healthy also reported having more intimacy (nearly double the amount) than those who reported fair or poor health. Diabetes, hypertension and other health issues can greatly impact sexual behavior, for instance.

“Sexual health, when it begins to deteriorate, may be an important warning sign, because it may be an early warning sign of more profound health problems,” said Edward Laumann, co-author of the study and the George Herbert Mead Distinguished Service Professor in Sociology at the University of Chicago.

The researchers hope the study will open up an avenue of communication about sexual and overall health for seniors, who are the fastest growing segment of the population.

“This subject has been taboo for so long that many older people haven’t even talked to their spouses about their sexual problems, let alone a physician,” said the lead author, Dr. Stacy Tesser Lindau, assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology and of medicine-geriatrics at the University of Chicago.

The study involved two-hour, in-person interviews conducted in the participants’ homes. It revealed the following:

• 73 percent of those aged 57 to 64 had sex with a partner in the previous year
• 53 percent of those aged 64 to 75 had sex in the previous year
• 26 percent of those aged 75 to 85 had sex in the previous year
• The most sexually active people did so two to three times a month or more
• Men were more likely to be sexually active than women, perhaps because far more women were widowed and lacked partners
• Sexual problems were reported in half of those having sex. For men, the most common problem was erection trouble, in women, low desire
• Viagra had been used by one out of seven men to enhance their sex life
• Most participants had not discussed sexual activity with a doctor since age 50 (only 22 percent of women and 38 percent of men in the survey had)

Ultimately, staying intimate for the long haul, as long as no health problems are at play, may be one of the best things you can do for your health and your relationship. Studies do, in fact, show that couples in happier marriages have sex more often, and intimacy is good for your body and soul.

“A good sex life is an important part of an individual’s overall health,” says Mark Schoen, Ph.D., director of sex education for the Sinclair Intimacy Institute. “People who have a good sex life feel better [mentally and physically].”

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Want to Live Longer? Be Wealthier? And Happier? Here is the One PROVEN Secret: Reading!

Posted on January 10th, 2010 | In Diabetes, General, Health & Lifestyle

Many people seek refuge from a hard day by curling up with a good book. Others use reading as a way to pass the time while traveling or waiting for an appointment, while still others read for the pure enjoyment of it.

No matter what your reason is for reading, research has shown that it’s good for more than just your imagination.

Stress Relief

Reading fiction, spiritual, self-help and other literary genres is an excellent way to calm your mind. Says Jill Brennan:

“Taking your mind off your own problems, even for a few minutes, can have a therapeutic effect and be a timely circuit breaker. This is so effective that the National Health System in the United Kingdom has introduced a “Reading and You Scheme.” The scheme encourages mental health patients to read more as part of their therapy for reducing stress and overcoming anxiety, depression and social isolation.”

Finding effective ways to relieve stress in your life is key to keeping healthy and living a long, disease-free life. Maybe reading is one of yours?

Be More Successful (and Wealthier)

According to a study by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), frequent reading is a huge factor in a student’s future success.

Researchers said, “Being more enthusiastic about reading and a frequent reader, was more of an advantage on its own than having well educated parents in good jobs.”

OECD’s Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) conducted the study to determine how well young adults in 31 countries were prepared to enter society at the end of compulsory schooling. Among 15 year olds, it was found that “children from the most deprived backgrounds performed better in tests than those from more affluent homes if they enjoyed reading books, newspapers and comics in their spare time.”

And according to an OECD report, “Finding ways to engage students in reading may be one of the most effective ways to leverage social change.”

Indeed, being better prepared for society’s challenges gives a person an advantage that could lead to a better education, a better career and even a better income later in life.

Support Your Own Mental Health

The National Health System (NHS) in the United Kingdom had so much faith in the power of reading that in 2000 it implemented a program called the Reading and You Scheme (RAYS).

In partnership with the Kirklees and Calderdale libraries, the program objectives included:

• To promote the idea of reading (particularly fiction) as an alternative to drugs, in the achievement of mental and physical well-being.
• To encourage greater use and awareness of the library services by all, but especially those suffering from social isolation.
• To support and empower the individual to improve confidence and self-esteem and to improve learning and inter-personal skills by reading, discussing and debating in small informal groups.
• To raise awareness amongst library staff and health professionals of the benefits of reading.
• To continue to collect hard evidence and examples of the benefits of reading for general mental and physical well-being.

So far, the program has been a success. Here’s how it works: ‘Bibliotherapists’ work with health professionals, who ‘prescribe’ books and meetings with the bibliotherapists to patients in lieu of (or in combination with) other treatments. Together they promote the benefits of reading for:

• Relaxation
• Reducing stress, anxiety and depression
• Social isolation

A similar program was also started in Wales by Professor Neil Frude, a consultant psychologist at Cardiff and Vale NHS Trust. He said:

“We launched the scheme in March 2003 in Cardiff, now it’s been copied in 45 areas across the UK. Ninety percent of mild to moderate psychological problems are treated in primary care. And the benefit of the scheme is that patients can be given similar treatments in a book that they would receive in counseling.”

Medical experts have compiled a list of 33 books that belong to the program and are available in libraries across Wales.

Looking for a Really Good Read?

The Observer compiled a list of the 100 greatest novels of all time. Inevitably it caused a fair amount of controversy. Here are the first 25:

1. Don Quixote Miguel De Cervantes
2. Pilgrim’s Progress John Bunyan
3. Robinson Crusoe Daniel Defoe
4. Gulliver’s Travels Jonathan Swift
5. Tom Jones Henry Fielding
6. Clarissa Samuel Richardson
7. Tristram Shandy Laurence Sterne
8. Dangerous Liaisons Pierre Choderlos De Laclos
9. Emma Jane Austen
10. Frankenstein Mary Shelley
11. Nightmare Abbey Thomas Love Peacock
12. The Black Sheep Honore De Balzac
13. The Charterhouse of Parma Stendhal
14. The Count of Monte Cristo Alexandre Dumas
15. Sybil Benjamin Disraeli
16. David Copperfield Charles Dickens
17. Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte
18. Jane Eyre Charlotte Bronte
19. Vanity Fair William Makepeace Thackeray
20. The Scarlet Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne
21. Moby-Dick Herman Melville
22. Madame Bovary Gustave Flaubert
23. The Woman in White Wilkie Collins
24. Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland Lewis Carroll
25. Little Women Louisa M. Alcot

Thank you for taking the time to read this blog at RivergateDentalCare.com, you can learn more about our dental services by reading our blogs. We have additional information concerning pregnancy and diabetes, pregnancy and gum disease, diabetes dentistry, cosmetic dental work such as lumineers and teeth whitening. Information on  oral health, systemic connection with periodontal disease, tooth extractions, dentures, cosmetic dentistry, sedation dentistry and sedation solutions, gum disease, root canals, children’s dentist, family dentist, smile solutions. Rivergate Dental Care is located in Goodlettsville TN, Rivergate area and provides dental services to Nashville and the surrounding areas including Gallatin, Hendersonville, White House and Greenbrier. We have three doctors in our office: Dr. David Weaver, Dr John Friedmann and Dr Katie Ham (female dentist). We accept Blue Cross Blue Shield and also work with Delta Dental. Call today to schedule an appointment! We offer free exam and free x-rays to all new patients! 1 800 FIX MY TEETH (1 800 349 6983).