Adolescents with autism need access to better sex education

by Steven Stagg [I]ntimacy is part of being human. There are well-documented benefits to positive relationships, from emotional security to good mental health1. Those who want relationships and can’t develop them face low self-esteem, depression, loneliness and isolation from the wider society2. For adolescents, learning how to navigate sex and sexuality can be a minefield. …

How many times do women need to explain that penetration isn’t everything before everyone gets it?

By Ellen Scott [T]his week, sex therapist Dr Janet Hall advised MamaMia of a catchy new term for sex that doesn’t just involve placing a penis inside a vagina and wriggling it about. ‘Introducing outercourse’, said MamaMia, explaining that ‘outercourse’ counts ‘kissing, massaging, using vibrators, touching erogenous zones, clitoral stimulation, oral sex or toe-sucking. Basically, …

Sex Education Based on Abstinence? There’s a Real Absence of Evidence

By Aaron E. Carroll [S]ex education has long occupied an ideological fault line in American life. Religious conservatives worry that teaching teenagers about birth control will encourage premarital sex. Liberals argue that failing to teach about it ensures more unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases. So it was a welcome development when, a few years …

‘I’m 62 and my sex life is more important now than ever’

By Heather Saul [S]ex is just as important for women after 50: that’s what the European Court of Human Rights made clear when it ruled that the judges who reduced a 50-year-old woman’s compensation for a botched gynaecological operation had discriminated against her. Maria Morais, who is Portuguese and has two children, sought compensation on …

Young entrepreneurs launch a handy online guide to all things sex

A team of millennial entrepreneurs have pulled together a ‘BuzzFeed of sex ed’. About time too. By Lucy Whitehouse Fumble describes itself as a ‘handy guide to sex’ (pun intended). It offers curious teens social content like blogs, videos, games, galleries and quizzes. The team behind Fumble say it responds to the lack of engaging digital …

Taboo-busting sex guide offers advice to Muslim women seeking fulfilling love lives

The Muslimah Sex Manual: A Halal Guide to Mind Blowing Sex is praised for empowering women By Alia Waheed [I]t was a confession by a newlywed friend about her disastrous sex life that gave Umm Muladhat an idea for a groundbreaking book. Published last week, The Muslimah Sex Manual: A Halal Guide to Mind Blowing …

I’m not that sexually experienced. How can I be more confident in bed?

Buck up, champ: Feeling a little anxious about your sexual history (or lack thereof) is totally normal. Here are 10 ways to improve your sexual performance without having to have sex first. by Vanessa Marin [E]veryone has anxiety about being great in bed, but when you don’t have much sexual experience that anxiety can feel …