How many people should we sleep with in our lifetimes? One study answers
Psychology is a science that tries to explain the functioning of the mind and brain and the behaviour of people , and scientific studies in this discipline are often curious and, therefore, the conclusions of many investigations are also curious.
One of the topics that arouses most interest in behavioral science is how we relate to others. In this article we echo research that reveals how many people we should be intimate with, either within a relationship or as a one-time event.
Intimate relationships, a human need
Human beings are social beings and are characterized by being born, reproducing and dying. In order to reproduce, human beings enjoy pleasant moments with the person who attracts them, and although reproduction is a vital need for the survival of human beings, intimate relationships are not a cold or mechanical act, there is an emotional component that turns this moment into something incredible, a unique and special moment .
Having sex is also health. There are many benefits to this practice: greater emotional well-being, less stress, helps us to lose weight, has a positive effect on our heart, etc.
How many people should we have sex with?
As you can see, the health benefits are many, but not everyone has the same opinion about intimate relationships. While some people think of sex with a liberal mentality, others prefer to arrive at marriage as virgins. Some people may find it hard to believe that there are people who don’t have sex, but what happens when we don’t have intimate relationships? You can find out in this article: “What Happens to Our Mind and Body When We Have Sex?
Thus, there seems to be variety in people’s opinions as to how many individuals we should share a bed with at some point in our lives. Regarding the question “how many people should we sleep with in our life?” , recent research seems to have sought the answer to this question.
The ideal number of people we should sleep with is 10
According to Illicit Encounters , a British dating site, the number of people we should sleep with is 10 . To conclude this, the company analyzed the responses of more than 1000 people who were surveyed.
This is an intermediate number between what people consider to be too promiscuous and loose and what it is to have insufficient experience in intimate relationships. 38% of the female participants and 37% of the male subjects stated that the ideal number at bedtime is between 8 and 12.
Additionally, only 3% of women and 4% of men felt that more than 20 people is the correct number of people with whom to share our moments of maximum intimacy.
We are increasingly tolerant and adventurous
But these are not the only data provided by the subjects of this survey. They were also asked about their interest in finding out how many people their partner had slept with. 35% of the women and 30% of the men answered that they like to know it when they start a relationship .
This data varies between generations, with the less modern ones showing more interest and curiosity about the number of conquests of their boyfriend or husband.
In this regard, Cristian Grant, spokesman for the company, explains: “We are thinking more and more freely about intimate relationships and who we sleep with. As the years go by, the generations are becoming more tolerant and adventurous.”
Recommended article: “Sex between friends strengthens friendship”
And… what about the frequency of intimate relationships?
The data from this survey concludes that the number of people we should sleep with is 10, but it does not say anything about the frequency of intimate relationships.
How many times do we have to do it a week to be happy? This is what a group of researchers from the University of Toronto Mississauga in Canada asked themselves. To test their hypothesis they analysed the sample of 30,000 subjects.
As the results showed, having an active sex life promotes happiness and well-being in the couple, but the increase in sexual frequency in a relationship has a positive effect to a limit. In other words, having sex with your partner is important, but more is not always better.
- If you want to read more about this research, you can read our article: “Does having lots of sex make couples happier?”