We all understand why women who have more sex tend to get pregnant faster than those who spend less time between the sheets, but now scientists have discovered they also have healthier pregnancies in the long run.
The latest research shows that women who enjoy regular sex with the same partner in the three months before conceiving reduce their risk of pre-eclampsia, a dangerous pregnancy condition that affects up to ten per cent of first-time mothers.
Apparently, it's all down to the immune system. An Australian
study involving 2507 single pregnant women showed that among those who became pregnant the first time they ever had sexual contact with the father, the risk of pre-eclampsia was 22 per cent, three times higher than the average.
Low birth weight babies were also more common among women in this group.
In a piece entitled 'What's The Point of Sex', published in
The Conversation, Professor Sarah Robinson explains:
"Most people think just one sperm is needed to fertilise a woman’s egg and make a healthy pregnancy. This underpins a common view that all the other sperm – and all the other sex – are surplus to requirements, at least when it comes to conceiving a pregnancy.
However, biologists now believe sexual intercourse is not just a sperm delivery process, but also a kind of biological communication. Regardless of whether fertilisation occurs, sperm and other components of the ejaculated fluid trigger subtle changes in the immune system of women."
So there you have it. Hoping to become a mum? Schedule a few extra early nights as soon as possible.
