There are practically a million reasons why you might want to get a good night’s sleep. To start with, you have a sharper brain. You also have a healthier heart, better blood sugar levels and a lower risk of obesity and premature death. (Oh, and your immune system starts firing at all cylinders every day like it should.)
But if you are an older woman not getting enough quality sleep, A new study just published says there is another reason you might want to turn off the power earlier in the evening and stick to much better sleeping habits: You probably have much worse sex, assuming you have anything at all.
According to the study, published in Menopause, the official journal of The North American Menopause Society (NAMS), women who do not get enough sleep can get experience what the researchers describe as a form of sexual dysfunction in women.
Related: Never Do This If You Want A Good Night’s Sleep, Say Health Experts
The study analyzed the sleep quality, sleep duration and “sexual function” of more than 3,400 women with an average age of 53 years. Ultimately, the researchers concluded that poor sleep quality – and not necessarily sleep duration – was associated with a greater risk of sexual dysfunction in women. “In contrast, good sleep quality was linked to sexual activity,” said the official publication of the study.
“If you give a tired woman a sleep scale and a sex scale, she will choose sleep every time,” said Stephanie Faubion, MD, medical director of the NAMS, the director of the Mayo Clinic’s Center for Women’s Health, and the study’s senior author, noted to CNN, about the study’s findings.
Faubion says the “female sexual dysfunction” noted in the study is largely defined as low sexual desire specifically associated with feelings of anxiety. “You can’t call it sexual dysfunction unless a woman is sad about it,” she further explained to CNN. “For example, a woman may have low sexual desire, but it can’t bother her. So we are, as far as I know, the first study to look not only at sexual functioning but also the related distress.”
The study also found that women who slept less than five hours a night were more likely to have ‘sexual problems’.
If you want to sleep better, try some of these helpful tips, all courtesy of The Mayo Clinic. And for more reasons you should be getting more sleep every day, see these dangerous side effects of not sleeping, according to experts.
“Ban appliances from your bedroom and create a dark space by using blackout curtains or an eye mask,” notes the Mayo Clinic. “Noise can also disrupt your ability to sleep. Try using a fan or a noise machine to block out unwanted sounds.”
“Like children, adults sleep better when they have a bedtime routine. Doing the same thing every night before bed can help prepare your body for rest and prepare your brain for sleep.”
“If your busy mind is keeping you up at night, try practicing stress management techniques before going to bed.”
“If you find yourself in bed and stressed about your inability to sleep, get up and do something that promotes relaxation. This could be an uninteresting book, practice a relaxation technique, or focus on your breathing. Sleepy, go back. to bed. ”For more information on the importance of no trying to hard when it comes to sleeping, read about The Best Trick to Falling Back to Sleep After Waking Up in the Middle of the Night.