We all know that sex can be a great form of stress relief. It’s one of the surprising ways your sex life can impact your health.
Psychosexual and relationship therapist Kate Moyle told Hypebae that intimacy in the form of sex or any sexual activity can release the love hormone oxytocin and other endorphins that promote relaxation. Ultimately, this “can reduce cortisol levels, which is our major stress hormone. It’s not just your erogenous zones that crave sex to relieve stress — it’s your brain too,” added the relationship therapist.
The 2017 study’s authors arrived at a similar hypothesis based on their research on telomere length and sexual activity. Baca told PsyPost that the results of the study opened up new areas of questioning as to how exactly sex could contribute toward the length of telomeres. “For instance, we proposed that sexual intimacy may dampen the effects of stress by down-regulating stress response systems and up-regulating immune response. Over time, these patterns of stress function should result in longer telomere length,” shared the researcher.