Published in the journal Fertility and Sterility, the study also reveals that besides low sexual self image, women are also stressed by arousal, orgasm, desire and responsiveness dysfunction. (Source: Getty/Thinkstock)

Stress has permeated daily life and now, among other things, many young women around the world are worried about their sex life. The word ‘sex’ and the choice to engage in sexual activities, has been frowned upon in many nations. This has kept people from having a healthy dialogue around it, resulting in a lot of second-hand information and ill-informed decisions, vis-à-vis sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) . Many countries, including India, lack a proper sex education system, with some people getting into the morality of it, and insisting others feel guilty and ashamed for their personal choices. It does not come as a surprise then that many young adults, particularly women, are greatly stressed.

A recent study conducted by the Monash University in Australia corroborates this. According to the study — keeping in mind the sexual well-being of Australian aged between 18 years and 39 years — it has been found that almost half of the young-women population in the country experience some kind of personal sexual distress, like embarrassment, guilt and overall sexual dissatisfaction. But, more commonly, it has been low sexual self image that has been bothering them.

Experts say that this could be because a woman’s low sexual self image stems from the insecurity of having to view pictures of sexier women in movies and magazine covers. This, in turn, can affect her, making her feel ‘not good enough’, or ‘not desirable enough’ of the standards set.

Published in the journal Fertility and Sterility, the study also reveals that besides low sexual self image, women are also stressed by arousal, orgasm, desire and responsiveness dysfunction, with as many as 9 per cent, 7.9 per cent, 8 per cent, and 3.4 per cent of respondents, respectively, affected by them.

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As against this, a study of data from almost 3,000 women in the United States showed that those who said they had sexual activity weekly or more frequently – including intercourse, oral sex, sexual touching or self-stimulation – were 28 per cent less likely to have experienced menopause at any given age, than women who said they had sex less than once a month.