28% of women over 35 'never have sex'

More than one in four British women aged 35 and over "never" have sex, a poll revealed today.

A total of 28% of women said they never make love, with the figure being highest in Scotland (38%).

Meanwhile, 32% of women in the Midlands said they have sex on a weekly basis.

Among those having sex, women without children said they had more orgasms, with 41% saying they orgasm most of the time.

The figure dropped to 12% of women with one child and 14% of those with two.

Most women said the daily grind of the office had an impact on their sex lives, with 67% of those working part time saying they had orgasms most or all of the time compared with 55% of women working full time.

The survey was released by Sky Real Lives to mark the launch of its new series, The Secret Guide To Women's Health.

It found most women admit to violent mood swings at certain times of the month, with 35% of those aged 35 to 44 saying they felt violent tendencies towards themselves or someone else during their period.

When asked about their concerns about the menopause, 28% of women aged 35 and over said they fear losing their memory and 26% are scared of losing their sex drive.

The poll of 745 women also found that 42% of those aged 35 to 64 have sought medical help for depression or are thinking about doing so.

Barbara Gibbon, head of Sky Real Lives, said: "Women's health has never been such a hot topic.

"The survey results indicate that there are issues that are just not being talked about and women are suffering in silence - PMS (premenstrual syndrome) and its mental impact being just one case in point.

"As a channel dedicated to women, we feel that looking into every aspect of health and delivering key information to our audience is incredibly important - knowledge really is power."

The Secret Guide To Women's Health is presented by Coleen Nolan and a team of medical experts.

It will tackle a different issue in each episode, ranging from menopause and incontinence to sexual health and eating disorders.

Nolan said: "There are so many women suffering from health problems they don't want to seek help for because they think it's embarrassing.

"This research and the new show will provide a platform to discuss any problems which they can't talk about with friends."