ArticleThe journal of sexual medicine2021
Olfaction Is Associated With Sexual Motivation and Satisfaction in Older Men and Women.
Article in The journal of sexual medicine, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
10 citing papers in PubMed, 22 citations in OpenAlex.
- The Impact of Anosmia on Intimacy: A Linear Mixed-Effects Model Analysis of Sexual Wellbeing Following COVID-19.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- The scent of mating strategy: sociosexual orientation was associated with olfaction and body odor sniffing behavior in Chinese and American populations.BMC psychology · 2025Article
- The Context Matters: Women's Experiences of Their Partner's Odor in Intimate and Sexual Encounters.Archives of sexual behavior · 2024Article
- Inflammation and olfactory loss are associated with at least 139 medical conditions.Frontiers in molecular neuroscience · 2024Article
- Validation of the questionnaire of olfactory disorders (QOD) for the Brazilian population.Clinics (Sao Paulo, Brazil) · 2024Observational
- Olfactory Dysfunction and Depression Trajectories in Community-Dwelling Older Adults.The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences · 2024Article
- Effects of Endoscopic Sinus Surgery on Olfactory Function.Current allergy and asthma reports · 2023Review
- Sniffing of Body Odors and Individual Significance of Olfaction Are Associated with Sexual Desire: A Cross-Cultural Study in China, India, and the USA.Archives of sexual behavior · 2022Article
- "Mask up to keep it up": Preliminary evidence of the association between erectile dysfunction and COVID-19.Andrology · 2021Article
- Is Sex Good for Your Brain? A National Longitudinal Study on Sexuality and Cognitive Function among Older Adults in the United States.Journal of sex researchArticle
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundSensory function declines with age and may impact sexual function in older adults. Indeed, the sense of smell plays a uniquely strong role in sexual motivation. Therefore, olfactory dysfunction in older adults may be intimately linked to changes in sexual desire and satisfaction.
aimTo test whether impaired olfactory function is associated with decreased sexual activity and motivation in older adults.
methodsCross-sectional analysis of a nationally representative sample of community-dwelling older U.S. adults from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project. OUTCOMES: 2 modalities of olfactory function were measured (sensitivity to n-butanol and odor identification) via validated methods (Sniffin' Sticks). Respondents answered survey questions about frequency of sexual thoughts (motivation) and sexual activity, and satisfaction with their most recent sexual relationship. A wide range of demographic, health, and social information were also collected.
resultsDecreased olfactory function in older U.S. adults was associated with decreased sexual motivation (odds ratio 0.93, P = .03) and less emotional satisfaction with sex (odds ratio 0.89, P = .04), but not decreased frequency of sexual activity or physical pleasure, in analyses that were adjusted for age, gender, race, education, cognition, comorbidities, and depression. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Olfactory dysfunction may affect sexuality in older adults. Potentially treatable causes of sensory loss should be addressed by clinicians to improve quality of life. STRENGTHS & LIMITATIONS: These results rely on validated olfactory testing, detailed measures of sexual attitudes and behaviors, and extensive demographic, health, and social history in a nationally representative sample of older U.S. adults. Owing to the cross-sectional nature of these analyses, we cannot determine causality.
conclusionsOlfactory dysfunction in older U.S. adults is associated with decreased sexual motivation and emotional satisfaction, potentially due to evolutionarily-conserved neurological links between olfaction and sexuality. Siegel JK, Kung SY, Wroblewski KE, et al. Olfaction Is Associated With Sexual Motivation and Satisfaction in Older Men and Women. J Sex Med 2021;18:295-302.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.