Body weight and assessment of sexual life – a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Introduction and Objective . Body weight can be one of the health effects affecting people’s well-being in its many aspects. The aim of the study was to assess the relationship between body weight and sexual life. Materials and method . In June 2020 a survey was conducted online on a nationwide representative group of 3,000 Poles. A year later, in June 2021thje survey was repeated on a nationwide representative group of 2,500 Poles. The data obtained from 4,266 respondents were then analyzed. Four proprietary questions were used to assess sexual life, based on which a 3-point scale was developed (2020 – α = 0.80, homogeneity 61%; 2021 – α = 0.77, homogeneity 64%). Results . Excess body weight as measured by BMI was more common in 2021 than in 2020, which confirms the upward trend in body weight in society (55.5% vs. 52.7%). In 2020, more respondents indicated a good assessment of their sexual life than in 2021 (27.3% vs 23.5%, p=0.007). People with excessive body weight rated their sexual life as poorer on the scale (2020 p=0.003; 2021 p=0.009). Multinomial logistic regression showed that people with obesity (BMI>30) had a 1.7 higher increased risk of poor assessment of sexual life than those with normal weight (OR: 1.728; 95% CI: 1.396–2.138; p<0.001). In addition, multinomial logistic regression showed significance for the poor assessment of sexual life for the following factors: age 50–65; female. On the other hand, the following factors were associated with the good assessment of sexual life: age 18–29, being in a relationship, and the year of the study. Conclusions. Body weight may be one of the most important aspects affecting the assessment of a person’s sexual life. Educating patients about the correct body weight is extremely important in order to improve their health and sexual life.