Many older adults are having, and enjoying, sex

Sex is not just for the young: 40% of U.S. adults ages 65 to 80 say they are having sex — and even more of them,

73%, are satisfied with their sex lives, according to a new survey.

The survey, released Thursday, does show that sex declines with age and illness. It also finds that older men say they are more sexually active and sexually interested than older women, but women report more sexual satisfaction.

Among seniors with spouses or partners, 54% said they are sexually active.

Overall, the survey shows that “sex is an important part of the lives of older people and a part that probably doesn’t get the attention it deserves,” said sociologist Erica Solway, associate director of The National Poll on Healthy Aging at the University of Michigan.

The poll periodically surveys older Americans on a range of topics. The sex survey was done online in late 2017 and included 1,002 randomly selected participants. It received funding from AARP, the aging advocacy group. Among the findings:

❚ When asked whether they were “currently sexually active,” 46% of those ages 65 to 70 said yes, as did 39% of those ages 71 to 75 and 25% of those ages 76 to 80. The researchers did not define “currently,” so “some people could have been referring to the past couple of years while others were referring to the past couple of weeks,” Solway conceded.

❚ Sexual activity (also undefined by the pollsters) was reported by 51% of men but just 31% of women — a situation at least partly explained by the fact that more men remained married or otherwise partnered, Solway said.

❚ Sexual activity was reported by

45% of those who said their health was good to excellent but just 22% who said their health was fair to poor.

❚ Half of men but just 12% of women said they were “very” or “extremely” interested in sex.

❚ Seventy-three percent said they were content with their sex lives, and 31% of men and 43% of women reported high levels of satisfaction.