The researchers at the United States Center for Disease Control track everything from possible pandemics to general health issues among Americans. And one of those "general health issues" turns out to be our sexual habits - for good reason, since this data can help epidemiologists track sexually transmitted diseases. But sometimes the data reveals a lot about our culture, too.


Take, for example, the latest data on anal sex. According to the National Survey of Family Growth, which surveyed thousands of people between the ages of 15 and 44 in 2006-2008, anal sex is really popular with heterosexuals. 44 percent of straight men report having anal sex at least once in their lives, and 36 percent of straight women do too. Though more straight men than women were enjoying anal sex, women were enjoying gay sex more. Twice as many women (12%) reported having homosexual sex at least once in their lifetimes compared with men (5.8%).

Want to know more? Of course you do. Read the full study over at the CDC. [PDF]

Thanks, Charles Moser!