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This Is How Often Women Masturbate

This Is How Often Women Masturbate
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By 

Senior Reporter, HuffPost

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UNITED STATES - CIRCA 1950s: Young woman winking. (Photo by George Marks/Retrofile/Getty Images)

Clicking the mouse. Auditioning the finger puppets. Paddling the pink canoe. Finger painting. There are a whole lot of silly euphemisms for masturbation, and research shows most women over the age of 18 have done it at least once. But how often do women regularly masturbate? FiveThirtyEight crunched the numbers and found out.

FiveThirtyEight's Mona Chalabi analyzed Indiana University's National Survey Of Sexual Health And Behavior (NSSHB) to create an infographic illustrating how often men and women masturbate according to age. The NSSHB collected data from 5,865 Americans between the ages of 14 and 94 between March and May 2009.

While masturbation is a normal, healthy and (definitely) enjoyable experience, it looks like we have yet to shake the taboo surrounding women and masturbation. Perhaps unsurprisingly, men masturbate far more frequently than women do.


Infographic credited to Mona Chalabi and FiveThirtyEight.

As Chalabi points out, women are less likely to try masturbating, however, there is still a large gender gap when it comes to routine masturbation. Only 7.9 percent of women between the ages of 25 and 29 masturbate two to three times a week whereas 23.4 percent of men do.

This is one gender gap we can close all on our own. So, let's get to it.

To read more statistics on masturbation head over to FiveThirtyEight.

Before You Go

5 Health Benefits Of Orgasms
Gives You A Healthy Glow(01 of05)
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There actually might be something to the idea that we "glow" after sex. The hormone DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone), which shows increased levels during sexual excitement, can actually make your skin healthier. (credit:Thinkstock)
Keeps Your Blood Flowing(02 of05)
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According to Dr. Jennifer Berman, co-founder of the Female Sexual Medicine Center at UCLA, orgasms increase your circulation, keeping the blood flowing to your genital area. This in turn keeps your tissue healthy! (credit:Alamy)
It's A Form Of Cardio(03 of05)
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Although it can't be considered an alternative to daily exercise, having an orgasm is a cardiovascular activity. "Your heart rate increases, blood pressure increases [and your] respiratory rate increases," says Berman. And because it's akin to running in many physiological respects, your body also releases endorphins. Sounds like a pretty fun way to work your heart out. (credit:Alamy)
It Relieves Stress(04 of05)
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Most of our lives are so hectic that it's hard to even imagine being relaxed. However, it turns out that sexual release can double as stress relief. Not only do the hormones help with this task, Berman says that being sexual also gives our minds a break: "When we're stressed out and overextending ourselves, [we're] not being in the moment. Being sexual requires us to focus on one thing only." (credit:Thinkstock)
Aids Your Emotional Health(05 of05)
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Last but not least, when you know what it takes to make yourself orgasm, you may increase your emotional confidence and intelligence. "When you understand how your body works and ... [that it] is capable of pleasure on its own, regardless of your partner status, you make much better decisions in relationships," says Logan Levkoff, Ph.D., a sexologist and certified sexuality educator. "You don't look to someone else to legitimize that you're a sexual being." (credit:Thinkstock)
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