Australian men who have hit mid-life are living on the expectation of plenty. When their adult children finally leave home and work stress lessens, they expect they’ll be having more sex, according to a nationwide survey of 1500 men.

This optimism is characteristic of the baby boomer generation which, rather than slowing down for retirement, is gearing up for the next phase.

Although the survey was funded by a pharmaceuticals company to gain a better understanding of its market, it does provide a snapshot of the state of mind of Australian men between the ages of 40 and 69.

Funded by Lilly Australia, which markets leading potency drug Cialis, the health identity and sex (HIS) survey was conducted by Galaxy Research in March.

It found this generation of men is taking care of itself. Contrary to the myth, the great majority visited the doctor in the past year.

Older men were more likely to see their doctors and four visits a year were common.

Forty per cent had used the internet to research a health issue and 76 per cent had undertaken some form of health and wellbeing activity in the past year, such as taking complementary medicine, exercising or buying skin products.

On average, those surveyed were having sex three times a month but considered five times to be the norm for mid-life.

While a considerable number felt their sex life was not up to scratch, they took for granted their ability to perform when the opportunity presented itself.

About a quarter dismissed the prospect of erection difficulties on the basis that if it happened to them they would probably be so old it wouldn’t matter anyway.

They were more likely to consider a performance problem a sign of ageing rather than an indication of an underlying health issue.

The survey did find, however, that 47 per cent of the men had some level of erectile difficulty. With the more serious difficulties the impact often went beyond sex to a loss of intimacy.

Two-thirds of men who considered themselves to have major erectile problems reported it had changed the dynamic with their partner.

But for all the apparent openness of the boomer generation, when these men go to the doctor, half are reluctant to discuss sensitive issues such as libido.

But half did say it would be easier to discuss erectile problems if the doctor indicated these may be related to or caused by another health condition.

In his forward to the survey report, Health Institute for Men in Queensland director Michael Gillman wrote that, in his clinical experience, he had found a strong connection between a man’s sex life, the state of his physical and mental health and his overall sense of identity.

As sexual problems extend beyond the bedroom, rather than waiting for these sensitive issues to be raised, he suggests general practitioners initiate a discussion. They’ll find their male patients are grateful for it.

-afr.com