Pleasure derived from sex is a crucial factor in preserving youth. I would say that famous people with youthful good looks, such as Goldie Hawn, Helen Mirren and Joan Collins, all enjoy very active and healthy sex lives. Dr Weeks said loving couples make more of an effort to keep themselves in good shape for their partners and will also benefit from the physical and emotional effects of sexual intercourse.
Sex is the most intense kind of pleasure and that triggers certain chemicals.
In women it produces a human growth hormone which helps the process. Regular, loving sex came second to physical and mental activity as the factors most important to retaining youth. The research discovered that people can benefit from working and socialising with younger and older people and from having younger partners. The study also concluded that people who look younger are more altruistic, confident and have more intellectual activity. The biggest factors contributing to ageing were found to be smoking, exposure to the sun and stress.