New York - If it sometimes seems like all your friends’ birthdays come at once, you may not be imagining it.
Studies have shown that the most common birthday in the US is September 16, nine months after the country’s rambunctious winter holiday season.
According to studies and reports cited on the Daily Beast, nine percent of all conceptions take place between Christmas and New Year.
They found that season and temperature play a major role in dictating sexual appetite, though the popularity of December in particular is most likely attributed to the high volume of parties and socialising that takes place that month.
It could also be that the long, cold days of the northern hemisphere Yuletide period drive couples indoors for the evening, where distraction from the bedroom is minimal.
It’s not just conception rates that rise towards the end of the year: condom sales double in December, showing that sexual activity in general rises.
A report on the subject in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine explained: “The period from Christmas to the New Year is associated with increased opportunities for socialising and a generally more hedonistic approach to life.”
December marks a major contrast with August, described as the annual trough for conception rates in countries in which the month is about late summer. This results in far fewer births in these parts of the world, come April.
A University of Texas study explained that warmer weather can have a biological impact on our bodies, which will affect desire to have sex.
“Biologic hypotheses include deterioration of sperm quality during summer, seasonal differences in anterior pituitary-ovarian function caused by changes in the daylight length, and variation in quality of the ovum or endometrial receptivity,” it read.
It supports findings from an Ohio State University study which showed that despite the amount of flesh on display in the summer months and a more relaxed attitude to life, heat and humidity dampen sexual desires.
The Daily Beast article on sexual activity revealed that people were more likely to engage in sexual activity at night rather than in the morning, because it is often the only time a couple has alone together.
Unless you’re a teenager, that is, as 15 to 17 percent of adolescent intercourse takes place between 3pm and 6pm in the afternoon.
And according to the University of Indiana, Friday and Saturday are the most popular days of the week for sex, with intercourse least likely to take place on a Sunday. – Daily Mail