You’re A Good Night’s Sleep Away From A Better Sex Life

We know sleep is essential. Lack of shut-eye can affect your mood, judgement, and ability to retain new information — and, as new research suggests, it can even impact your sex life. The Journal of Sexual Medicine published a small study online that examined the impact of sleep on the sexual behavior of 171 female college students. The women filled out online surveys every morning for 14 days, reporting on their sexual desire, arousal, and orgasmic function from the day before. Accounting for variables such as age, birth control, and depression, the results revealed that more sleep is associated with a greater desire for sex the following day. The study saw that even an extra hour of sleep meant a “14% increase in odds of engaging in partnered sexual activity.” And, the researchers noted that women who slept longer, on average, "reported better genital arousal than women with shorter average sleep length." Of course, this doesn’t mean that all sexual problems and hangups will be cured by a good snooze. But, it’s yet more proof of how powerfully sleep affects our lives.