Unlock the Secret: Just Once a Week? The Surprising Minimum Frequency of Sex to Fight Depression
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Ever wondered if there’s a magical number of times you should be hitting the sheets each week? Well, buckle up because a new study suggests there is – and get this – it could actually fend off those pesky blues of depression. As someone who’s been in the trenches of SEO, where algorithms are as unpredictable as my dog on caffeine, finding the right frequency for anything in life is kind of my jam. And now, science dives into the bedroom, telling us the ideal amount of intimacy might just be the key to a happier mental state as well as a perkier place in Google’s heart of rankings… I mean, search results. Listen, as someone who’s toggled between work and, well, let’s not dwell on the specifics here, I’ve always believed happiness and a well-lived life need balance, right?
So, when researches say that once or twice a week helps with emotional well-being, I’m thinking, “Yes, this does check out!”. But here’s the kicker:
According to a new study, there is an exact ‘optimal’ number of times you should be having sex every week – and if you hit that number, it may even help with depression.
Though it may seem obvious to most people, there are lots of clear links between having regular sex and better overall wellbeing.
This is not the first time scientists have come up with an ideal amount of sex to be having, with one suggesting an ideal number of times per month by age, and another suggesting the right amount if you’re in a happy relationship.
While many studies examine the beneficial elements of sex from a physical perspective, this new one factors in emotional wellbeing.
The paper was published in the Journal of Affective Disorders, conducted by researchers from The First Affiliated Hospital of Shenzhen University and Shantou University Medical College.
If you were wondering how much you should be shagging each week, it’s finally been figured out (Tom Merton via Getty Images)
Within this, they studied whether ‘sexual activity might serve as a behavioural indicator related to mental health’.
Their sample size was predominantly based in the US, across multiple demographics among ‘young and middle aged’ people between the ages of 20 and 59.
The answer, essentially, was yes, but it’s a bit more complicated than that.
The research came out to the conclusion that people who have sex at least once a week are less likely to suffer from depression.
It further found that having sex once or twice a week is the ‘optimal amount’, offering the greatest psychological benefits.
The study found that the more you’re getting between the sheets, the happier you are in the streets (Prostock-Studio via Getty Images)
Researchers did, however, describe a ‘saturation effect’, essentially stating that the psychological benefits of sex ‘peaked’ at a frequency of 52 to 103 times a year, essentially about once or twice a week.
This is not to say that you wouldn’t be happy if you’re having sex five times a week (I think many would be jealous of this), but that it gives a similar psychological benefit as once or twice a week.
The scientists behind the study were clear, however, in their note, that this does not yet 100% confirm a negative correlation between depression and frequent sexual activity.
Who’d have thought – having sex regularly can make you happy? (Peter Cade via Getty Images)
Information gathered in the study was ‘cross-sectional’, essentially meaning it was only taken from one specific point in time rather than a regular study of the changing correlation between sex and mental health.
The study did still, however, argue that sexual frequency is a ‘useful’ behavioural marker for mental health.
Sex releases endorphins and can lead to stress relief, intimacy, and emotional bonding, all of which contribute to more positive mental health.
So if you were up in the air on how much to be having sex, get yourself to a place where it’s happening once or twice a week and you’re golden it seems.
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