At What Age Does A Man First Develop Low Sex Drive?
At what age will you start to experience sexual decline? Read about some risk factors that up your odds of developing it sooner rather than later.
Last Updated: 12/13/2022
Sexual decline can happen to any man, but the age at which it starts happening is different for every guy.
You can stay sexually active well into your senior years. A study by University of Chicago researchers found that 30-year-old men can expect to continue having sex for at least 35 years.1 In that same study, 40% of men 75 to 85 years old were sexually active.
How long you keep your sex drive can depend upon a number of factors. Here are some of the most common reasons for sexual decline and ways you can continue to keep things hot under the sheets even when you’re older.
Factors That Cause Sexual Decline to Happen Sooner
You’re more at risk of sexual decline if you have any of these factors:
A High Sexual Age
Sexual age refers to how much sexual stamina you have and how well you perform in bed compared to other men your age. It’s also a measure of how your physical health impacts your sex life. It’s an important measure because it can guide you into taking steps to defend against sexual decline.
Your sexual age isn’t the same as your chronological age. You could be only 60 years old chronologically, but your sexual age could be in the 80s or higher. Men who are noticing problems in the bedroom usually have a higher sexual age.
Diabetes
Diabetes can cause you to age faster in many ways, including sexually. It’s estimated that 35% to 75% of diabetics have sexual decline and the onset happens 10 to 15 years earlier in men with diabetes compared with non-diabetic men.2 Diabetic men have at least three times the risk of sexual decline compared with non-diabetic men.3
Heart Disease
Sexual decline and heart disease are tied together since they both involve blood vessel health.4 Science shows that sexual decline can predict whether you will have heart problems later on.4 And if you have any heart problems, chances are good you’re suffering from sexual decline, too.
Weight Gain
Since gaining weight can lead to diabetes and heart disease, it’s not surprising that packing on the pounds isn’t great for your sex life. But even if you don’t have either of those conditions, weight gain can still impact your performance in the bedroom.
Low Testosterone
Testosterone is a hormone involved in libido and sex drive. If a man’s levels are low, it can cause low sexual stamina. Low testosterone levels are linked to conditions associated with sexual decline, like diabetes. For example, up to half of men with type 2 diabetes have low testosterone.5
Low testosterone is one of the reasons why weight gain causes sexual decline. Men whose testosterone levels have tanked are more likely to have too much belly fat.6 On the other hand, weight loss boosts testosterone levels. Talk with your doctor about ways to increase your testosterone, including exercise, weight loss, and testosterone replacement therapy.
Factors That Delay Sexual Decline
The factors we just mentioned increase your risk of sexual decline and low sex drive. Here are a few things you can do to delay or even eliminate your chances of getting sexual decline.
Exercise
This is an important one. It’s one of your best chances of delaying sexual aging and keeping your whole body healthy. Exercise supports sexual health in many different ways, including keeping the arteries healthy.7 Exercise also supports heart health and blood sugar, so it’s a good way to keep at bay those conditions linked to sexual decline.7 Aerobic exercise with moderate-to-vigorous intensity works best in regards to reducing sexual aging.7
The Best Type of Diet for Sexual Health
You’ve probably heard the advice to eat healthy, but what does that look like in regards to sexual health? Two of the best types of diets to fend off sexual decline are the Mediterranean diet and intermittent fasting.
The Mediterranean diet is loaded with fruits, vegetables, olive oil, whole grains, lean meats such as seafood or poultry, and nuts. People on a Mediterranean diet eat a limited amount of dairy and avoid red meat and sugary desserts.
A study by the European Society of Cardiology found that men who ate a Mediterranean diet had higher testosterone levels, better exercise endurance, and improved sexual performance.8 This type of diet also supports a healthy heart.8
Pairing up the Mediterranean diet with intermittent fasting is a great way to ramp up each diet’s effectiveness. Most people who are on intermittent fasting eat during a limited window during the day, such as in a four to six-hour time span. If they eat their first meal at noon, they’ll have their last meal of the day by four or six p.m.
Research shows that intermittent fasting can boost performance in the bedroom. One study of 271 guys discovered that men who either participated in intermittent fasting or ate an organic diet were less likely to have sexual decline.9
Weight Loss
By exercising and changing your diet, the ultimate goal is to become lean and fit. Compared to normal weight men, males who are overweight or obese have a 30% to 90% greater risk of developing sexual decline.10
Different Ages for Different Men
The bottom line? Sexual decline starts at different ages for different men, based on different risk factors. Making lifestyle changes can increase your sex drive and please your partner.
Sources:
2. https://www.bumc.bu.edu/sexualmedicine/physicianinformation/epidemiology-of-ed/
3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3949699/
4. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26049392/
5. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31006133/
6. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25982085/
7. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30873650/
8. https://www.webmd.com/erectile-dysfunction/news/20210908/mediterranean-diet-for-erectile-dysfunctino
9. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32717247/
10. https://www.nature.com/articles/ijir20089