In 2010, Lisa Copeland found herself single again.
After two marriages — one lasting 24 years and the other lasting two — the Cleveland resident in her early 50s didn’t know where to start looking for a relationship. .
Copeland tried to enlist the help of a dating coach but realized that no one under the age of 50 could understand the plight of adults her age. Instead of crying to her sister on the phone, which she had already tried, she decided to change her perspective.
“Dating in your 20s was about getting married, having kids, cats, dogs — building your own world,” said Copeland, now 68. “Today, it’s about of fun and play.”
But the dangers single people over 50 face are different from those they faced as singles decades earlier. Learning that lesson has become important to Copeland and others as research shows that sexually transmitted diseases, or STDs, are increasing among older adults at a faster rate than among other groups. some years.
The rising rates of STDs in the elderly can be explained, in part, by the convenience of 21st century lifestyles. Adults are living and having sex longer thanks to medical advances, health experts say. They are more likely to live in older communities and have more partners, but are less aware than their younger counterparts about how to use prevention tools, such as condoms and testing he blankets frequently.
Part of the problem is that people in this community are not educated, experts say. The bigger issue is that people of all ages are uncomfortable talking about sex – especially among American adults – which makes it difficult to spread awareness about sexual health.
“There are a lot of factors that go into this,” said Janie Steckenrider, who researches politics, aging and sexuality as an assistant professor at Loyola Marymount University. “We need to start getting used to the fact that older adults have sex and the interest in sex does not stop at a certain age.”
STDs are becoming more common among the growing population
Young people have a higher rate of STDs, however, experts say what’s alarming is the rate at which STDs are increasing in adults 55 and older.
From 2012 to 2022, chlamydia cases in this population more than tripled, increasing from 6,084 to 19,776 cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At the same time, the department’s researchers also found that gonorrhea cases have quadrupled and syphilis cases have increased seven times.
Steckenrider said the increase since 2012 has been “pretty amazing.”
These infections can be easily treated with the right antibiotic cocktail, but they can cause complications if left untreated. This is especially true for older adults, who often have other health conditions that can be exacerbated by infection, said Dr. Angelina Gangestad, director of the department of obstetrics and gynecology at University Hospitals Cleveland, Ohio.
According to the World Health Organization, untreated Chlamydia and gonorrhea in women can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease which can lead to chronic pelvic pain. Men with untreated chlamydia can also experience painful infections and swollen joints.
Syphilis can attack any organ system and can cause long-term damage to the heart, brain, nerves and eyes, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Dating practices that increase the risk of STIs
Sexually transmitted diseases are increasing at an alarming rate among older people because they are living longer, healthier lives, experts said.
They also have the opportunity to remain sexually active for a long time due to the help of erectile dysfunction drugs and hormone therapy to treat the symptoms of menopause. Two-thirds of older adults say they are interested in sex, according to AARP.
“When you have older people who are physically fit, they’re going to have more sex and be able to function better in those ways,” said Gangestad, of Ohio University Hospitals.
More seniors also choose to live in senior communities than to live at home or with a family member, Steckenrider said, which leads to more sexual partnerships.
More than 800,000 people live in assisted living facilities in the United States and about 1.5 million live in nursing homes, according to the American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living.
Dating prospects are generally poorer for older people than for singles in their twenties.
About 30% of American adults over the age of 50 are single due to death or divorce, according to 2022 data from the Pew Research Center, compared to 47% of people in seniors under 30 years of age.
Women live six years longer than men on average, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. Although research shows that men of all ages tend to have more partners than women, experts say the trend may be more pronounced among older men because there are fewer men in the pool. get out
Older people are also more likely to meet online through dating apps, where partners don’t know each other’s sexual history and the abundance of options makes it easy to date partners. many.
“This is a generation that came up in the 1960s and 70s during a time of sexual revolution,” which challenged monogamy and traditional gender roles, Steckenrider said. They have this vision of free sex and love in their later years but fail to incorporate the safe sex aspect that was taught to the younger generations.
Sex education and stigma
Having multiple partners or unknown sex is less of an issue if adults use contraceptives to protect themselves against sexually transmitted diseases, experts said. The problem is that they are not.
These citizens may have grown up in a generation of “free love,” but education about sexually transmitted diseases didn’t enter the mainstream curriculum until the 1980s, according to Planned Parenthood. Parenthood.
Gangestad, of University Hospitals in Ohio, said that young people at the time learned about contraception but teachers did not focus on sexually transmitted diseases. “You have an age group where you don’t worry about pregnancy anymore and therefore … they don’t think about using condoms in the same way.”
Many older adults were in monogamous relationships and had families when HIV became a public health crisis in the 1980s, Steckenrider said. said. Sexually transmitted diseases were not their concern then, and they are not a concern now.
“For many older people, there’s a disconnect. They don’t think they’re at risk,” said Fred Wyand, a sexual health expert and director of communications at the American Sexual Health Association (ASHA).
Experts say people can prevent the transmission of sexually transmitted diseases through screening and testing, however, health providers are less likely to test older people than younger patients, experts say. we.
Patients may not show symptoms of sexually transmitted infections or their symptoms may mimic those associated with certain medications or other health conditions, so providers may not they consider asking about an STD test.
Doctors “tend to think that older people don’t have sex, so they don’t usually ask about their sex life,” Steckenrider said. Unless an adult brings it to their health care provider, it is not discussed.
How to change that pattern
The key to reversing the rising STI rate among adults is awareness and better education, experts say.
Doctors must not be afraid to talk about sexual and sexually transmitted diseases with their older patients and older patients must know what to ask.
Wyand said: “There is a problem for patients and professionals. It is difficult for older patients to discuss these issues with their younger primary care provider.
To help start these conversations, the organization offers ten questions to ask health care providers during a health visit, including, “Where can I go for a checkup?” and “How often should I get tested?”
Sexual health experts also suggest that educators bring sex and STI resources to adults, senior centers, libraries, hospitals and other places where adults can ‘ where do they see them.
It’s also important to promote diagnostic information, experts say. ASHA and Everly Health, a virtual care provider, partnered on National Get Tested Day on Sept. 30, to publish a warning. They offer 250 free home kits, which usually cost $69 each, to test for chlamydia and gonorrhea.
“The whole issue of stigma is really a hindrance, not only for older people, but anything that has to do with SEX can be difficult to talk about,” Wyand said.
But dating after 50 shouldn’t be fun. Copeland, who returned there in 2010, says she remembers her experience. In fact, it should be fun.
After finding happiness in her dating life, she founded the website FindAQualityMan.com in 2012 to help other women over 50 navigate the seemingly intimidating world of dating. She always advises her clients to discuss safe sex with their future partners and use condoms and lubricants.
“I don’t want people to feel guilty, but be safe about it,” Copeland said. “It’s good to perfect your hormones.”
Adrianna Rodriguez can be reached at adrodriguez@usatoday.com.
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