Summer is hot for a reason.
When the weather starts to get warmer, you could swear there’s something in the air (and not just the pollen that’s assaulting your sinuses). If spring is the season of budding romance and first dates, then summer turns things up several notches. After all, summer is when people have the most sex, according to research by the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine.
A British survey published in 2013 confirmed these more scientific findings, with participants naming August as their sexiest month, with June, July, and May following shortly thereafter. Analysis from a British app in 2017 found that sex increases by as much as 12% in summer months. There could be a slew of cultural factors at play here that influence the numbers. Summertime wedding season can spark fires for mingling singles, and, by August, summer romances can turn into more long-term relationships as the dawn of cuffing season approaches. Warm weather also lends itself to more socialization, at cookouts, beach hangs, and more—so more potential matches are likely to be made.
But there are some scientific factors at play, too. For one, the sun. Vitamin D deficiency can cause low estrogen and testosterone deficiency, which can result in low levels of desire and even sexual dysfunction for both, physician Sara Gottfried, MD, explains. (Some studies have even shown that increased levels of vitamin D can improve sexual function for people with penises.) A little time in the sun, then, can seriously make you feel some type of way.
Just because the summer is when people get busy the most often doesn’t mean they’re doing so with any family planning in mind—the holiday season, by contrast, is the most popular time to conceive (which would explain why you might know so many Libras and Scorpios). Funnily enough, despite it being one of the most popular times to have sex, August is one of the rarest times to conceive, according to a 2001 study. The summer months are all about pleasure, and with a vaccinated season on the horizon for many, you may want to stock up on condoms while you’re at it.
