It is very often the subject of boasts… or cruel jokes: how long a man “lasts” in bed.
If everything ends too quickly, the other party may be left dissatisfied. But equally, continuing for too long can become a chore.
In an attempt to put an end to the debate over what IS a normal amount of time, science has been working hard to find some definitive answers.
A recent study suggested that men in the UK last about seven minutes, on average, before ejaculating, while others suggest 10 minutes is the norm.
But whether sex ends sooner or later is not necessarily a cause for concern, says Dr Richard Viney, consultant urological surgeon at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham.
One study suggested that men in the UK last about seven minutes before ejaculating, while others suggest that most men take about 10 minutes on average.
Speaking to MailOnline, he said: “Terms like premature or delayed ejaculation are more of a social construct than a medical one.”
While he admits there are some cases where extremely premature ejaculation may need intervention (medical textbooks suggest a persistent pattern of ejaculation within a minute of sexual activity, before the man desires it), in most cases it is simply a matter of “perceived norms” and “ideal duration.”
Three studies, all published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, used different methodologies and sample populations, but their results reveal what is considered “normal” when it comes to the duration of sexual intercourse.
One 2023 study surveyed 1,660 men to find out how long it takes them to ejaculate in the hope of helping diagnose those who have trouble achieving orgasm.
The sample included primarily heterosexual men from Hungary and a significant proportion from the United States and other English-speaking countries.
The men, who had an average age of 39, were asked to estimate how long it took them to ejaculate from the start of stimulation to orgasm during partnered sex.
It was scored on a nine-point scale ranging from one minute to more than 25 minutes.
Dr. Viney admits that there are some cases where premature ejaculation needs intervention, but in most cases it is simply a matter of “perceived norms” and “ideal duration.”
Researchers found men who Those who took more than 10 minutes to ejaculate were more likely to report significant “orgasmic difficulties.”
Another 2020 study published in the same magazine revealed how long men normally last, but this time from the perspective of both men and women.
Participants were recruited on social media sites such as Facebook and Reddit through advertising, resulting in 1,065 respondents, of which 571 were men and 494 were women.
They were asked how long they think most men last during penetrative sex, what duration they consider ideal, how long they think qualifies as premature ejaculation, and how long they personally last during penetrative sex.
There were no significant differences between the lengths estimated by men and women.
Most participants estimated that men last about five minutes, but admitted that the ideal duration would be twice that, about 10 minutes.
Men and women also agreed on an average threshold of about 1.5 minutes for what is classified as premature ejaculation.
However, men who reported premature ejaculation problems estimated the typical and ideal duration compared to men who did not.
The results showed no significant differences between heterosexual, homosexual and bisexual men and the results were also similar across all age groups.
But people who had more sexual partners estimated longer typical times.
TO study from 2005, also published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, involved asking 500 couples from several countries to measure how long sex lasted using a stopwatch.
In total, 4,000 sexual events were timed and couples had sex on average eight times over four weeks.
From the beginning of penetration, the men took an average of 5.4 minutes to ejaculate.
But times ranging from 0.55 seconds to 44.1 minutes were recorded.
The study found that men in the UK most often lasted 7.6 minutes in bed.
It was also found that younger men, aged 18 to 30, were slightly faster to finish, at 6.5 minutes, while men over 51 were even faster, at 4.3 minutes.
But Dr. Viney said interpreting studies in this area can be “problematic.”
This is because trying to observe sexual intercourse will likely negatively affect the outcome, he explains.
“Trying to interpret and apply these results to real-life people and their experiences then becomes a challenge,” Dr. Viney said.
While length of time spent in bed is not a cause for concern in most cases, it could be an indicator of health.
The NHS warns that premature ejaculation could be a symptom of prostate problems or the result of recreational drug use. It can also cause stress and anxiety about your sexual performance.
Dr. Viney said interpreting studies in this area can be “problematic.” This is because attempting to observe sexual intercourse will likely negatively affect the outcome (stock image)
While delayed ejaculation can be caused by diabetes, some antidepressants such as SSRIs, and spinal cord injuries.
Dr Viney said: ‘Ultimately, if a man feels that he is having problems with any aspect of this very sensitive but hugely important part of his life, he should consult a doctor.
“It will be unlikely that there is a serious underlying problem, but a lot can be done to address the symptoms and this work makes the visit worthwhile.”
But Dr. Viney explains that there is no single definition for how long a man should last in bed, but it is important to pay attention to any sudden changes.
She said: ‘For some women, 30 minutes of sex may be the dream, but for others this would be a nightmare, due to the pain, so there really isn’t a ‘one size fits all’ definition of what duration is optimal.
‘Premature ejaculation is usually not indicative of a major underlying problem.
‘The person may feel like they’re in a bit of a bind, but it’s usually a learned behaviour problem and there are things that can be done to improve the situation.
“A fairly sudden change in ejaculatory behaviour would be worth investigating, but generally there would rarely be a major underlying problem.”
Delayed ejaculation is not always caused by a health problem and can have several causes, explains Dr. Viney.
“Recent previous ejaculation can make an encore much more difficult and often difficult to achieve,” he said.
He added: “Much of this is due to the different competing parts of the autonomic nervous system that control erection and ejaculation.
‘Ejaculation deactivates the erection and reactivating it afterwards can be a challenge.’
Dr. Viney explains that some medications can also change the time it takes a man to ejaculate.
He said: ‘Arousal is another important component of the underlying ejaculatory process and anything that serves as a distraction can interfere with a man’s ability to climax and ejaculate.
‘Certain medications can interfere with achieving climax, one group of which are drugs like Viagra that, ironically, men take to enhance their erections.
“Some groups of medications do not interfere with climax, but may decrease ejaculation, such as tamsulosin, which is prescribed to men to treat prostate symptoms.”