The Time (2/25) “Healthland” blog reports that, according to a study published in the Archives of Sexual Behavior, a greater number of sex partners may be associated with an increased risk for drug addiction. Investigators “followed virtually all of the 1037 children born between 1972 and 1973 in Dunedin, New Zealand, and asked about their sexual partners as well as alcohol and other drug use.” Female participants “who had more than two to three sex partners when they were 18 years to 20 years old were nearly 10 times more likely than those who had none or one sexual partner to develop a drug problem, primarily involving alcohol or marijuana, at age 21.” The researchers found that, “at age 32, the risk was nearly 18 times greater for women who had more than two to three partners when they were aged 26 to 31 compared to those with one or no partners during that time.” While the risk was elevated among men with higher numbers of sex partners, it was not increased to the same extent.
Related Links:
— “More Sex Partners Linked to Higher Risk of Drug Addiction, Alcoholism, “Maia Szalavitz, TIME, February 25, 2013.