Hydration Trumps Sex?

Way back in 1992, John Gray wrote the now-famous book about how men are from Mars, and women are from Venus. More confirmation, as if any were needed, that men and women have vastly different priorities, is provided by a reliable online survey of more than a thousand women, 25 and older, of their opinions on healthy living.

The survey was sponsored by Cooking Light magazine, and for me was a real eye-opener. It was done as scientifically as any online survey can be done, and the results indicate that women think drinking enough water is more important than having enough sex.

Hydration trumps sex?

Not only that, but sex comes in seventh on the list. Most important: getting enough sleep. OK, hard to argue with that. Keeping stress levels low was #2 on their list, followed by finding time to relax, eating healthfully, hydrating, exercising, and then….having enough sex.

I’m pretty sure, without a scientific survey to back me up, that the priorities for men would be different. I’ll hazard a guess that hydration doesn’t even make the list, and that having enough sex is probably close to the top of the list, and that if you asked the typical man if he’d rather have a good night’s sleep or….well, you get the idea.

The revelations don’t start and stop in the bedroom. Women would rather be thought of as healthy than almost anything else. Healthy is more important than wealthy, powerful, beautiful, sexy, or successful. What’s the top item on that list? Being thought of as smart.

I believe, gentlemen, that we can learn a great deal from this study.
One of the other categories of the women’s survey where we can likely find something to agree on, is that the vast majority of women say they look younger and feel younger than their actual age. I’m constantly told that I don’t “look” (or act) like I’m 60. 60 is the new 40. It’s more than a cliché.

And, the majority of women surveyed say their self-confidence is influenced by their appearance and their overall health and wellness. No disagreement on that. Although the bias against overweight women is several orders of magnitude greater than it is for men, every guy I know feels better about himself when he looks good.

Three-quarters of women today pay more attention to their health and wellness than they did only five years ago, and I’d be hard-pressed to find a male acquaintance who doesn’t feel the same way.

My conclusion, after reading the study: men and women are indeed from different planets, but there’s enough similarity to lead me to believe we’re in the same solar system.