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Obesity a Major
Obstacle to Good Sex Life
A study finds
that extra weight depletes both desire and performance.
New research confirms the worst fears of those who worry about
putting on extra pounds: Severely overweight people are much more
likely to report poor sex lives.
In some areas of their sex lives, the obese report 25 times as many
problems as people of weight levels considered healthy. Both men and
women suffered from lack of sexual desire and enjoyment along with
hampered performance. Many reported avoiding sex entirely.
The study results suggest that many overweight people share similar
challenges on the sexual level, said study co-author Martin Binks, a
clinical psychologist and director of behavioral science at Duke
University's Diet and Fitness Center. "It's important for people to
know it's not something that's wrong with them. It's something that
other people experience. They're not alone in this."
Binks and his colleagues surveyed 1,210 people from the Durham,
N.C., area. Most had sought treatment at Duke's diet center, and all
but 282 were obese, with an average body mass index of 41. The index
indicates whether a person's weight is proportional to his or her
height; a 5 foot, 5 inch person weighing 250 pounds would have a BMI
of 41.
Binks presented his findings Nov. 17 at the North American
Association for the Study of Obesity annual meeting in Las Vegas.
Half of those seeking treatment for obesity said they sometimes,
usually or always felt no desire for sex, compared to just 2 percent
of those who were not obese. About four out of every 10
treatment-seekers reported physical problems with sex; 41 percent
said they avoided sex. In contrast, just 2.5 percent of the
non-obese people said they stayed away from sexual activity.
Obese people who didn't seek treatment reported more sexual
satisfaction, but they remained much less likely to report normal
sex lives than the non-obese.
Sexual difficulties among the obese are "a more common problem than
one would expect, and they deserve treatment," Binks said. He
speculated that self-esteem issues may contribute to the sexual
problems facing the obese, whose numbers are growing.
"The public is well aware that they can run a risk of diabetes,
cardiovascular disease, and hypertension and so forth [if they're
obese]," he said. But the risk of sexual problems "isn't as much
talked about." |
