A survey by a leading condom manufacturer seems to indicate that Taiwan's people have lost their interest in sex. The survey claims that the average number of sexual encounters per person dropped from last year's 78 times per year to this year's 65 times per year.
According to a report released yesterday by Durex SSL International (
Durex said that its annual poll of 18,500 people in 28 countries showed that the world's people were having more sex -- and starting earlier than ever before -- and the US was leading the field in all categories.
The survey -- published ahead of World AIDS Day on Dec. 1 -- showed global respondents averaging 97 times a year, up from 96 last year. US citizens questioned averaged sex 124 times a year with over 14 different partners and were also starting earlier than anyone else at an average age of 16.
The Greeks had sex the second-most frequently -- 117 times a year on average -- while the French's reputation as a nation of lovers took something of a hit with sexual frequency dropping from 121 times a year to 110 and slumping from top of the number-of-partners-table to second with 13, compared to 17 a year ago.
Taiwan ranked No. 26 among the 28 countries, with the average "sexual frequency" dropping from last year's 78 times to this year's 65 times -- slightly higher than Hong Kong and Japan. Japan remained at the bottom of the lovers' league with an average of 36 sexual encounters per year.
According to Cheng Cheng-chieh (鄭丞傑), a doctor at the obstetrics and gynecology department at Cathay General Hospital (國泰綜合醫院), Taiwan's economic troubles are to blame for the decline in its people's sexual activity.
The survey results also indicated that the beach was the most popular venue for sex, with 27 percent of respondents putting it ahead of the runner-up: the hot tub. The survey also suggested that Hong Kong people preferred the office for their sexual exploits while Nigerians splashed out in the swimming pool.
In Taiwan, however, many preferred doing it in their cars, as 25 percent of the respondents said that they would love to join the "Che Chuang Tsu" (
Meanwhile, according to the survey, men appeared to be more sexually active than women, claiming a frequency of 102 times a year against 91. Men also claimed an average of 10.7 partners, versus 4.6 for women.
Almost a third of all people said they had been faithful to one partner, while 16 percent claimed more than 10 partners.
There were also considerable regional variations with Westerners starting their sex lives much earlier than Asians. People in the US, Germany, France, Britain and New Zealand begin at around 17, while in India, Malaysia, Taiwan and China the average age for "first-timing" was 20 or older.
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