1 week Ago
Having sex once a week is the perfect recipe for a happy marriage, scientists say By PAT HAGAN Published: 19:31 EDT, 26 April 2025 | Updated: 19:37 EDT, 26 April 2025 e-mail View comments Having sex once a week or so is the perfect recipe for a happy marriage, a study shows. Researchers found that couples who were intimate weekly were just as content as those having sex several times a week – and much more satisfied with their relationships than others who have sex once a fortnight or less. Psychologists from the University of Alberta in Canada wanted to find out if intimacy is crucial to a relationship or whether many couples can be sexless but happy.
A 2020 YouGov poll found that 11 per cent of British couples have sex once a week, 7 per cent twice weekly and 9 per cent at least three times. But the numbers decline as people grow older. Almost a fifth of those in their early 40s said they have no sex at all.
For those in their mid-70s, this proportion jumps to 57 per cent. The Alberta team tracked 2,000 couples, mostly in their 20s and 30s, in long-term relationships where they were either married or living together. They recorded how active their love lives were and compared the data with results on relationship satisfaction.
The research, published in the Journal of Family Psychology, showed that those who get passionate on a weekly basis were less likely to argue and were more inclined to share their feelings with each other. Having sex once a week or so is the perfect recipe for a happy marriage, a study shows (stock image) Researchers found that couples who were intimate weekly were just as content as those having sex several times a week – and much more satisfied with their relationships than others who have sex once a fortnight or less (stock image) Read More Revealed: How often you should be having sex to reap health benefits - are you hitting the target? But the vast majority of couples who got intimate only every few weeks had lower levels of relationship satisfaction. In a report on their findings, the researchers said the result showing weekly sex binds couples together is good news for couples who worry they should be at it all the time in order to be happy.
'This may counter unrealistic expectations that couples should be having sex multiple times a week, or the belief that the more sex they have, the better,' the report said. But what of happy sexless couples? 'We found only 2.3 per cent of them reported being happy with their relationship, despite not having had sex in the past three months.
' Former Take That singer Robbie Williams, 51, talked publicly in 2023 about how the passion had gone from his marriage to Ayda Field, 45, but that the couple still loved to cuddle and spend time together. He blamed a slump in his libido after coming off testosterone replacement therapy, which he used to tackle his depression. 153 issues that cause relationship strife Messy partners, a lack of passion and rows over who does the washing up are the most likely reasons to cause marital discord.
They are at the top of 153 problems that can occur in relationships, according to research, and irritable, selfish and know-all partners are more of a headache than the traditional interfering in-laws. Lack of loyalty and respect, disagreement over family planning, and privacy invasion, such as reading a partner’s email, were lower down the list. ‘Intimate relationships tend not to be easy, and in the study, we have identified problems that plague them,’ say the researchers, whose study appears in Human Nature magazine.
They quizzed more than 200 men and women. Around 70 per cent were married and 30 per cent in a long-term relationship. Canada Share or comment on this article: Having sex once a week is the perfect recipe for a happy marriage, scientists say e-mail Add comment Comments 0 Share what you think No comments have so far been submitted.
Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. Add your comment Enter your comment By posting your comment you agree to our house rules . Submit Comment Clear Close Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual.
No Yes Close Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook.
You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy ..
