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Obesity may impede sexual health
By Elizabeth Landau Here's another peril of obesity to add to the well-known risks: It may harm sexual health. A study published in the British Medical Journal looked at survey results from more than 5,500 women and 4,600 men in France regarding sexual behavior. Of them, 411 women and 350 men were obese, as defined by a body mass index (BMI) of over 30. Unintended pregnancy or abortion were four times higher among obese women under 30 years old than among normal weight women in that age range. The authors reason that this may stem from a lack of effective contraception. Obese women were 70 percent less likely to use the pill, and eight times more likely to use less effective methods, such as withdrawal. This may relate to another finding in the study: that obese women tend to infrequently seek contraception from health care professionals, compared with normal-weight women. The phenomenon may reflect the obese women's negative feelings about their bodies, worries that the pill will make them gain more weight, or their doctors' concerns about the cardiovascular risks of estrogen-progesterone contraceptives. Obesity was associated with erectile dysfunction in men, but not with sexual dysfunction among women. Still, researchers found a trend toward decreasing sexual desire with increasing BMI. Obese women between ages 18 and 29, they found, were three times as likely to have met a sexual partner through the internet than women with a normal BMI. The likelihood of having seen a pornographic film in the past 12 months increased twofold among obese women, but not men. Researchers found that obese women were less likely than normal weight women to say they had a sexual partner in the past 12 months, and obese men were less likely than their normal weight counterparts to have had more than one sexual partner in that time period. Partners of obese men and women were more likely to be obese also, with a stronger association for women than men. Many of these gender differences have not been shown in previous studies, the authors said, and health care professionals should be aware of this effect. However, note that this study comes from a population in France, and country-based factors may have influenced the findings. Editor's Note: Medical news is a popular but sensitive subject rooted in science. We receive many comments on this blog each day; not all are posted. Our hope is that much will be learned from the sharing of useful information and personal experiences based on the medical and health topics of the blog. We encourage you to focus your comments on those medical and health topics and we appreciate your input. Thank you for your participation.
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Get a behind-the-scenes look at the latest stories from CNN Chief Medical Correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen and the CNN Medical Unit producers. They'll share news and views on health and medical trends - info that will help you take better care of yourself and the people you love. Recent Comments
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News: Obese women have four times as many unplanned pregnancies as healthy-weight women despite having less sex, and obese men are more likely to have sexual diseases despite fewer partners, scientists said on Wednesday.
Newsflash: Hope they didn't pay much for that research. Fat women don't care as much about their bodies or they wouldn't be fat. It's reasonable to expect they don't care as much about prevention either. And fat men, please! You lay down with a dog, you get up with its fleas. They should have just paid me that $100K for the survey results.
Wow, obese people really shouldn't be having sex at all lest they produce offspring with the same lack of self discipline.
And if anyone thinks that's mean, try going to Europe or Asia where obesity is still considered largely sociably unacceptable and noone pretends it's some sort of "disease" other than a matter of personal will and choice.
I was overweight throughout college and have recently shed it all after I became a vegan. I definitely noticed the heavier I got, the harder it was to maintain an erection and my sex drive was way down. Now that I'm in excellent shape having lost 50 lbs, and running everyday, I'm back on the saddle and feeling great.
Wow! Being a Vegan did that for you? I am a 50 year old woman and need to drop some lb's. You've just inspired me to give the vegan lifestyle a chance!
Another possible correlation that this article didn't mention is fat prejudice amongst doctors, which could potentially discourage people from going to see their health care provider. Studies have shown that doctors give heavier people lower quality medical care, and not just obese people, but people who are only 20 pounds overweight (which is a lot of us).
so, your saying women who r obese just hate themselfs, don't have sex. i can prove that study was with white people who, r not attractive. no offense england, but your women are well, not too attractive. French, Italian, Spanish, Black women have more of the beauty, full figured, and bustly beauty. They are sexy, and having more sex then you think. so your wrong.
Wow Frankie Ty very much and agree with you so true!
obese people less worried about contraceptives, and more likely to look at porn?
possibly because they are less likely to find sexual partners.
i cant believe someone got paid to put this together.
Sorry, don't need med school for this one.
I find it telling that in the discussion of why "obese women tend to infrequently seek contraception from health care professionals," there was no mention of the well-demonstrated negative views healthcare professionals have of fat people, which deter them from seeking care.
While I certainly understand the inclusion of the first four paragraphs (discounting the opening line), the article seems to take a detour into the realm of value judgments. An increase in watching pornography can hardly be described as poor sexual health; one can, at most, say they do not think this not good in regards to morals. The article also seems to imply that meeting someone via the internet is somehow not as good or desirable as meeting someone through other means (i.e., friends, social organizations). The realm of internet dating is an emerging market that provides many benefits that traditional means lack. Internet dating can, in some ways, be perceived as superior to alternatives. Take, for example, that dating sites such as eharmony.com use compatibility surveys (that have been scientifically shown to be related to relationship success) to match people.
Oh Boy! Yet ANOTHER useless money wasting study to tell us something that is not only obvious but something we already know! Hmmm let's see what is next – I know! Lets waste more $ on a study that tells us how being overweight can lead to obesity .........really! or how about "A new study shows how obesity may lead to trouble running a marathon" OMG!
This is news? Fat people are unattractive, amazing discovery.
So - morbid obesity is not sexy? Who'd have thunk it !?!?
What surprising revelations will they offer next. Obese people do not run as fast?
I would think that being fat would imped sex because woman dont want fat guys unless their rich. Guys are far more liberal fat girls are comfortable and tend to be more forgiving than hard body women. So in conclusion from their looks alone fat men wont get any were as women can manipulate the small brained head and gain access.LOL
In related news, sexual health may help impede obesity.
It occurs to me that obese women may be more likely to have unintended pregnancies because they are have trouble making connections between their choices and unintended consequences. This may be why they are obese to begin with. Although they know, on some level, that eating the wrong things, eating too much and not exercising enough can make you gain weight, there is something at work that keeps them from applying it to themselves.
I see this type of behavior in my 13 year old step son with ADD. He knows right from wrong, but he doesn't apply it to himself. Also, he has trouble making the connection between his actions and the consequences.
Perhaps there should be a study into whether obese people and people with ADD share any of these behavioral traits.
You need a study to figure that out. Is that also part of the health care costs?
We pay farmers subsidies to grow corn. This reduces the price of corn to below market value. We then feed it to people in the form of high fructose syrup in thousands upon thousands of food-like products. These people and their children then get fat. Obesity related illnesses will cost this nation $2.1 trillion over the next 10 years, while the health care plan will cost us $1.8 trillion. Not to mention that this people don't enjoy sex like some of us do. Can we please have a massive tax on sugar?
I agree MpMc. I myself am changing my lifestyle to become a healthier person. All the crap the FDA allows in or food is ridiculous.
It's a monopoly on the food of this country by a handfull of companies. For profit, they will continue to use diseased cattle, fillers, and anything else that is cheap. And we eat it up. Sure wish healthy food wasn't so costly....hummm sounds like a conspricy to me lol!
Folks, I totally agree this study is beyond lame- but don't tie it to our wasteful spending. This is a FRENCH study published by the BRITISH Medical Journal.
We do enough stupid things. Let's not add this one to our list when it's not ours.
Fat girls will take whatever is thrown at them, and chubby chasers are usually fat themselves. Think about it, at closing time at the bar what kind of girls are still hanging around all drunk looking for guys to pick them up? The fatties that's who!
ww: I presume you are upset that such things are being paid for by average Americans, and you're upset that the new health care regulations will only increase the costs to people such as yourself. Please correct me if I'm wrong. I'm basing my assumptions on the trend I've seen that people who make comments like yours often – though not always – continue with some criticism against the Obama administration.
So with all that in mind please reread the article, focusing particularly on the first sentence of the first paragraph.
Why would anyone be the least bit surprised that obese men suffer from erectile dysfunction? Erectile function is obviously related closely to cardiovascular health; the thing only becomes erect due to blood pumping into it.
I am an obese 28 year old woman (5'4" and 230). I'm working on changing that but it is difficult. It is absolutely rude to say some of the things have been mentioned above. I am married and I have sex AND I use protection every time. I have no children. I don't view being obese as a disease. I believe it may be harder for some to lose weight than others. I have epilepsy and am on 4 different medications. Most of them list weight gain as a possible side effect. Yes, I can still lose weight while on these meds, it will just be more difficult. People need to encourage people with a weight problem, not make them feel worse about themselves. If "skinny" people were to invite people they know who are overweight with them to the gym, or to go for a walk with them that would help that person. Otherwise I don't see where "skinny" people can complain about large people if they are willing to help. Being mean will NEVER make someone skinny/healthy.
MpMc Your an idiot!! Its not the farmers fault that people are fat, its not the governments fault. They are not shoveling all the crap fat people eat into their mouths!! The culture in this country has become LAZY,eople would rather order out than cook their own food and when they do cook....it's all packaged quick and easy crap. Hey if every over weight fat person would just eat naked in front of a mirror they would lose weight.
GaryD, the reason for unintended pregnancies is that hormonal contraception is less effective for women above certain weights. The ortho evra patch, for example, is not intended for women over 200 lbs. With 66% of the country overweight or obese, there is no doubt that a lot of women are using birth control which will not be effective for them.
It amazes me at the intellect on this board. I'm so highly impressed that people think that being overweight means that you are ugly, don't care about yourself, and can not have a healthy sexual relationship. I mean why don't we just line up all of the "fat" people in the US and just put them in camps and sterilize them because heaven forbid that they procreate.
Why don't you all just grow up and realize that there have been fat people through out history and in all countries and yes to a certain extent it is due to excess but there are other factors in place. Do I think all fat people have some sort of medical condition NO but they may lack the skills to get to a healthier place in their life and attitudes like this don't help anyone.
No one is asking YOU to have a relationship with a fat person but by stating that they aren't worth having sex with you are becoming a hate monger no different than someone who is racist.
Just because you have the anonymity of the internet doesn't give you the right to be so ignorant.
What does being fat have to do with contraception? If they are less regularly active maybe that's why they're not on the pill in the first place, as opposed to thinner women who are more active all the time, so they get on the pill.
Also, it doesn't say if they controlled for education, which could be negatively correlated with both obesity and unwanted pregnancy, so it might be a confounder.
So healthy fit women have fewer unplanned pregnancies and are more likely to use birth control. That means it is more likely that obese, depressed women with low self-esteem are likely to have an unplanned pregnancy. What percentage of pregnancies carried to term are unplanned? If there are many then we can conclude that many children are being born with mothers who are obese, depressed and have low self-esteem. No wonder the kids are all becoming fat.
We should all admit that the day may come where we, or someone we love, could end up with a weight problem for one of many different reasons. It makes me sad to see all of these people passing judgment. How many of you have your own addictions: smoking, shopping, gambling, drinking, workaholism, gaming, etc? How many of you are perfect people who live their lives like saints?
Anyway, I think the person doing this study should have asked the women why they became pregnant. Stop making guesses, if you want to figure out how to help people.
Everyone knows you need to use birth control to prevent pregnancy. I believe that the vast majority of people who don't use it want to get pregnant, deep down, OR they have such low self esteem, they can't ask for (or recognize?) what they really want. They either want to have a baby or they can't bring themselves to speak up in the moment before sex occurs.
Not sure why the people who don't want babies don't go on birth control after the first time unprotected sex happens, though. Denial that it can happen again must run deep.
You know as a fat person with only 1 child I can say that this is a load of crap.I have just as much sex drive as my skinny friends and I have no problem getting birth control.Anyone who uses weight as an excuse not to ask your doc for contrceptives are the same ones that blame their weight problems on everything else but their selfs.I know I am overweight due to the fact I am not as physical as I should be but you know what,I am heathier than most of my skinny friends(mainly due to the fact that I don't eat alot of junk food.I love fresh fruit and veggies and even grow my own) and I love myself just like I am.Stop using your weight as an excuse for everything that doesn't go right with your life it is your own fault not your weight.You can be fat and healthy just like me just say no to junkfood and have lots of protected sex as its a great cardio exercise. LOL
To all of you who are complaining that this study is a waste of time and money because "everyone knows all of this already" you obviously do not have a background in research. Sometimes there are "obvious" things out there but how can you be really sure of them until there are studies supporting those assumptions. There have been many studies done on topics in which they were certain of the results they would get and it turned out that what everyone thought was not correct. It is always important to do research on topics in which no research exists.
Bla bla bla lalallaa u really didn't say anything don't try to
be smart lmao!!!
These are some pretty sick (but funny) comments here. You guys know that someone can be obese technically, but you'd never know it because they look perfectly normal? Me, for example. I have a BMI of 30.x (not sure how much of that's muscle), yet don't look like a fatass World of Warcraft-player at all. In fact, ladis find me sexy.
People should not judge others and these surveys are a waste of time. I am overweight and very happy with myself. I guarantee you that my sexual desire is not lacking at all. As a matter of fact, I guarantee that I have more sex with my boyfriend (who is very much in shape) than anyone that has written a comment on here and he is very satisfied. Although you may think it is just a saying, but what is on the inside counts more than the outward looks...people that look good sometimes have the worst attitude. Stop judging people from the outside – that is the problem with the world today...get to know the person before making decisions on what they are like.
I am saddened by the mean-spirited comments in response to this article. I think what is missing is compassion and empathy. Overweight people are people no less no more than any other person. I am of normal weight and have been for 90% of my life but spent a short few years obese. Studies like this will further our understanding of both our mental and physical health and should help enlighten our health care professionals. If we spent more time connecting with each other outside of cyberspace we may actually find that our social interactions would help us reduce some of the emotional eating patterns which have developed. Additionally, it should be noted that Europeans generally walk considerably more than Americans and obesity is not the epidemic it is here.
This just does not make since, fat people can enjoy sex!!! Just because your fat doesnt mean you dont and it doesnt mean that they dont take constraceptives. If your having sex then take birth control if you dont want to get pregnant! also there are some skinny people that have low self esteem and dont have sex either!!! I wish people would stop being what I call " racist" against fat people!!! If they are obeist, they know their health issues, they dont need so called " doctors" to tell them what they need to do!!!
No matter the reason why someone is obese it doesn't give anyone the right to be such an insisitive jerk about it. Also, some of you should go back and re-read your statements. Although I doubt it, but maybe you'll grasp how ignorant and un-educated your comments are. Hey, someone isn't socially acceptable by the standards set by Hollywood so let me make an ignorant high school crack about it in hopes I sound cool. I was under the impression these articles were read by mature adults. I stand corrected.
NEWSFLASH.
I am married for 20 years. I am FAT. I have a very active sex life, with a partner who is a very normal and healthy weight, and a very attractive man to boot. We have 4 beautiful and normal weight healthy children. All four were PLANNED pregnancies. I work out regularly and eat good, and am losing my weight, and despite my weight I am extremely healthy with no heart or blood pressure problems or all that other doomsday crap people try to foist on me.
Not all fat people are lazy. Not all fat people don't care. Not all fat people are unattractive. We are human individuals with the same needs wants desires and issues as everyone else.
So lets blow all those conclusions out of the water shall we...
Get over it and stop picking on others to boost your own self esteem.
Joy is kidding herself that she is healthy and fat and healthier than her skinny friends. She says she is fat but since she grows her own veggies and loves fresh produce she is healthy. This is all part of the delusion that is being forced into our culture by a malignant few. Get a grip by definition if your fat you are never ever healthy period.
Ur ignorant not a body specialist and even ur name says it all haha u be surprised how many overweight and obese healthy ppl there is rather then crackhead skinny people or unhealthy anorexic skinny people being anoxeric is disease being obese is a choice maybe ur right but you don't know how many patients with the flu cancer joint and muscular problems diabetes are at the hospital so don't talk without. Listening to yourself
If you don't feel good about yourself, and don't feel good inside your own skin no matter what the condition might be (in this case obesity)...then how can you have a healthy sex life...or expect your partner to fully participate... it just doesn't workl. It doesn't take some study to know this! It's common sense but like any addiction (unless there are medical reasons), overeating is a cry for help as there's something else going on deep down inside that needs to be dealt with before a healthy recovery can begin.
I think it's in the confidence of the person. I've seen confident men and women get more attention than anybody. Was in Starbucks one day and a plus size lady(could have easily been a plus sized model) came in. She looked good. Dressed sexy. She smelled amazing. Nails, toes impeccable. And SHE KNEW IT!! Couldn't get her out my head for a good half day!!
I'm female and overweight and I think this "research" article is a crock of crap...I have healthy sex. I have never been pregnant (because I took the proper precautions correctly)and I am monogomous. I take very good care of myself, I'm not lazy either.Every doctor I have even been too has said that I am relatively healthy and have no major health issues. So for you all to be judging EVERY overweight person the same is total BS.....
I'm always amazed by how bold and non-empathetic people can be when they are relatively annonymous on the internet. Discriminating against people because they are obese is just as bad as discriminating against them for their sex, race, religion, age etc.
"Fat Bottom girls make the world go round!" My sex life is awesome so please don't judge that all fat women will take what they can get. It's body image and being comfortable with who you are. Medical conditions and/or meds can make one fat. Not all of us can be a "Hollywood Size 0". Get a grip!!!
I am an overweight person, who is trying to lose weight...I do cook for myself at home and no it isn't all prepackaged crap. I actually make most of my meals from scratch. The biggest thing isn't always what you eat, it is how much of it you eat. I can eat a small portion and be satisfied, but America as a whole, has been taught that more is better. I have spent some time over in Asia and if you go to a starbucks, their large size is our small size here in the US. That tells you something right there....maybe Americans as a whole need to start looking at portion size, rather than what they eat.
Fat people always insist that they're the exception to the rule: they're perfectly healthy, they have great sex lives, they're in great shape, they're fit, they're athletic, they eat a healthy diet, etc. The problem is that we're supposed to just take their word for it, and why should we?
At the gym, the fat people are always the ones doing the lame low-impact exercises that would barely get a regular person to break a sweat. Then they go home and brag that "I work out three times a week".
At the grocery store, the fat people are the ones loading up their carts with crap. I see it all the time. How many of them actually admit this? I'll bet all of them insist that they actually "eat healthy" just because there are some veggies atop the huge piles of junk in the cart.
Fat people become experts at self-deception. They learn how to describe themselves in the most flattering terms possible. The average fat person is much more adept at flattering self-descriptions than the average thin person, just because he has practiced it more.
It's easy for you to speak ur Asian jjajaja all you eat is what rice & seafood??? Hahahaha yup well you know what u shouldn't talk allot Asians are overweight too now adays and you didn't see that before in the 90's
I question the validity of this "study" but I also think it's suspect if it really was done in France. I thought French people are all slim and healthy and DON'T GET FAT. So, they did this study with the 5 fat people they could find in France ????
This is to the skinny people who apparently are perfect in every way -
There is more to obesity then laziness. There are many health reasons – both mental and physical that not only make losing weight difficult but can actually make obese men and women gain more weight. Then you add in public discouragement and being berated by some health care providers, healthy foods being substantially more expensive then 'junk' food and most people not really knowing how to cook in a healthy manner to begin with and that is a recipe for our current situation.
As a whole we need to take control of the situation, we need to teach our young from the beginning how to cook in a healthy manner. We also need to change public and health provider opinion. Instead of reacting in disgust you should be reacting with compassion and willing to be supportive of people plight to lose weight – I can't tell you as an 'obese' woman the stares and snarky remarks I received when I went to go to the gym... The disrespect I received was incredible. How is that going to help me lose weight?
i am overweight and my fiance is not....and (sorry for the TMI) we have sex on a regular basis and enjoy ourselves every time. this all comes down to the self esteem factor. some people are comfortable being heavy, some are not. is that really a "scientific" thing? i would consider this more of a social finding rather than a medical one.
nevertheless, the findings are very telling.
I think that the real problem here is that overweight and obese people don't get enough medical care of any sort, period. Whether that is because they are uncomfortable with their bodies, or because they know the doctor will tell them to lose weight and they don't wanna hear it, I don't know. Either way, every one needs basic medical care. Obtaining oral contraceptives isn't something that is super hard to do. Neither is buying a condom. Studies like this are not a waste of time - not only do they tell us about public health, they tell us about society. There is something seriously wrong when people are afraid to get contraceptives. I could care less about who is having sex and how often and how much porn they see - like I already said, I care about basic health care.
The Holy Grail for most fat people, and in particular fat women, is the idea of "unconditional love". By having a child, whether planned or not, is the closest thing to attaining this. To survive, children and infants require unconditional love and they also return it back to the providing parent(s). They are simply too young to judge the obese parent as being or doing anything wrong. This is bliss to the obese woman who for possibly a lifetime knows society's bias against them.