The age you lose your virginity is influenced strongly by your genes, a new study shows. Researchers found that differences in DNA can account for a large part of when someone first has sex.
Of course, there are other factors influencing this, for example,
religious beliefs, family background and peer pressure but biological
factors do have a role to play.
According to John Perry, an expert in reproductive ageing at
Cambridge University, there is a ‘heritable component to age at first
sex, and the heritability is about 25%, so one quarter nature, three
quarters nurture.’
Scientists identified genes from the DNA of more than 125,000 people aged 40 to 69.
They discovered that the most common age for men and women to lose their virginity was 18.
Having identified 38 gene regions, researchers then looked into the
effects in 250,000 other men and women from Iceland and the US.
Out of the 38 sections, they found genes that drive reproductive
biology, such as the release of sex hormones and the age of puberty.
From this, they concluded that someone who has CADM2, a variant of
one of the genes, typically starts their sex life early and has a large
number of children.
A version of another gene, MSRA, was linked to people who lost their virginity later than average.
Another variant linked red hair color and freckled skin with women losing their virginity later than others.
Scientists also found that early puberty has a direct effect on the
age at which people first have sex and the age they have their first
child.
Writing in the journal, Nature Genetics,
George Davey Smith, a clinical epidemiologist at Bristol University,
said: ‘It suggests that earlier puberty does influence early age of
sexual debut, which then appears to have other consequences.’
This could include an ‘earlier first birth, having more children,
less likely to remain childless, and poorer educational outcomes.’
Source: Metro UK
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