Sexuality in the third age: a vision of the old people of a municipality of the interior of the state of São Paulo

Abstract

Objective: This study aims to describe the life and sexual profile of the elderly in a city in the interior of São Paulo and analyze their knowledge about sexuality. Methods: A questionnaire already validated by the Gender, Sexuality and Corporeity Laboratory (LAGESC / UDESC), was composed of 7 questions. For questions 1, 2, 5 and 7 a scale ranging from 0 to 10 was used, which corresponds to nothing (0), little (1 to 3), medium (4 to 6), reasonably (7 to 9 ) and much (10). Results: Participating in the study were 49 elderly people who, when asked about the importance of sex in youth, 33% said to be reasonably important and 53% very important. Regarding the current sexual frequency, 44% of respondents answered once a week. Conclusion: The sexual frequency factor is not the main factor for satisfaction, since the elderly talk about affection, companionship and attention. It is worth emphasizing the importance of sexuality for them and the importance of improving the approach by health professionals.