Sex does a body - and mind - good. While a romp in the sack may be fun, did you know that it also can benefit your health? We're talking about the kind of sex that happens in committed relationships, of course. Not the ones that begin and end in one evening of carousing. So with your partner, go ahead and get busy because there are plenty of reasons sex gives your health a boost. First, it's a great stress reliever. A Scotland study showed that people who had regular sex responded more favorably to stressful situations than those who abstained, and their blood pressure was lower. Couples who have sex at least once a week have been found to have higher levels of immunity, and for men who had sex twice or more per week, their heart attack rate was reduced by half. 

Orgasms increase the levels of oxytocin, the "love" hormone, and couples who have higher levels of oxytocin seem to enjoy greater intimacy and even reduced levels of pain. Sex is great for women experiencing PMS and that infamous excuse for not having sex, the headache, because of that oxytocin spike. Oxytocin is responsible for better sleep as well, which has a whole host of health benefits in and of itself. Finally, sex is good exercise. It may not sound like much, but a vigorous half-hour session can burn up to 100 calories. It definitely takes work to do it well and get a workout, but it can be done. And after 35 sessions or so, you can lose up to one pound!