6 Unknown Facts About Sex That Will Change Your Life

Sex as a topic of discussion used to be reserved for biology class and closed-door conversations. Information was hard to come by and tended to be subjective with very little research to separate fact from fiction. Books were limited or banned, and conversations on the topic were hush-hush. Thank goodness times have changed and we can write fun articles like this one. Today, there’s a lot of info and tons of research to back up claims and facts about sex.  We’ve compiled six of the most wonderful and weirdest facts about sex on earth. 

1. Sex works almost as good as aspirin tablets for headaches

Uh oh, there goes the headache excuse! Don’t stress just yet. The studies were based on the results of female orgasms and not penetrative sex. So, in theory, masturbation can also help with a headache which means you could “cure yourself.” 

A team of neurologists found that sexual activity can lead to “partial or complete relief” of head pain in some migraines or headaches. The study, from the University of Munster, Germany, suggests that instead of using a sore head as an excuse to refuse sex, making love can be more effective than taking painkillers.

2. An apple a day....can improve your orgasms

A group of scientists conducted a study using a pool of healthy young, sexually active Italian women with no known sexual disorders. The study was to see if there’s a tie between daily apple intake and sexual function. 

First, we need to applaud the 16 researchers for taking the time to prove this myth and the 733 participants for taking part in this study.  

The study found that women who eat more than one apple a day, (no apple juice, you don’t drink calories) had an increase in natural lubrication and more intense orgasms. The results are irrefutable, at least in Italy. Time to buy stock in Granny Smith. 

3. Ovulating women are more attractive

We’re getting to the weird part but bear with me. Psychologists at the University of Texas studied women at different stages of their menstrual cycle. They found that women look and feel more attractive when they are at their most fertile.

But it’s not because women naturally develop a magical glow during this time but rather that ovulating women made more effort to look attractive. 

Women show more skin, pay more attention to makeup and wear tighter clothes during ovulation. It’s biology at work. If you’ve ever used a hormone tracking app, you will notice some pretty spot-on predictions during ovulation about your physical appearance. So it’s no surprise that men find women more attractive at this stage, it’s natural for women, men just can’t help themselves. 

4. Cold feet reduces your ability to orgasm

Nope, not proverbial cold feet from Runaway Bride, iceblock feet we’ve all experienced during winter in SA (no internal heating guys). 

In a study in the UK on fake orgasms, researchers made an interesting discovery - when they gave the couples socks to wear, about 80% of the couples were able to achieve orgasm compared with 50% previously in this staged environment. 

The reasoning behind this is that warm feet make women feel protected (no pun intended) in bed. When the woman felt more protected orgasms came faster and better. Socks aren’t exactly a turnon though, so if you insist on wearing them, I will make some effort with the choice of feet warmers.

5. Men with more belly fat last longer than fitter men

Alright, I think we all have mixed feelings about this one, and I think I speak for all women when I say a chiselled physique makes up for a lot of things. And, if you’re a man reading this screaming out “Yes, I knew it”, then chill, flab ain’t fab, and it doesn’t do anything for your sex appeal so put that doughnut down.

The research I’m referring to was on the inverse relationship between lifelong premature ejaculation and obesity. Researchers hypothesized that because overweight men have higher levels of the female sex hormone estradiol, which can inhibit male orgasms, they lasted longer in bed.

Also, being overweight reduces your serotonin a.k.a the happy hormone levels, which could also be the reason for the delay in orgasms. But it’s not all good news. Overweight men and women are 25 per cent more likely to suffer from mood disorders, like depression, than the rest of the population. So when it comes to happiness or lasting longer in bed rather do those crunches and work on keeping a cool head in bed. You can always throw in a few sex toys if you need to "delay the process" a bit. 

6. Sex can improve your memory

Only women, Einstein! One study revealed that intercourse (sorry no self-help here) could improve a woman’s memory and verbal recognition! If you have a test coming up, you now have an excuse to phone your “study” buddy. You’re welcome.