This Europe: Forget the Italian stallion - a third of those Latino lovers are simply a flop in the sack
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.For the nation of bottom pinchers and Ferrari drivers, the news made glum reading.
A study by the Italian College of General Practitioners claims that more than 50 per cent of Italians - 53.7 per cent of men and 58.8 per cent of women - obtain little satisfaction from their sex lives. More than one third of men reported difficulty in obtaining an erection, maintaining it, or both.
The dismal news was contained in a report released in Italy this week. Forty randomly selected GPs handed questionnaires about sex to patients who were in generally good health, 54 per cent of them under 50, 77 per cent under 60.
The results contained in the 549 questionnaires that were returned amounted, Italian dailies lamented yesterday, to "a real disaster". The sex life of the average Italian, it transpires, is little better than a form of torture.
For many males, sex is pretty well a non-starter: nearly 30 per cent complained of "difficulty in penetration", slightly more than that of problems in achieving orgasm.
Women do not appear much happier - not surprising, given the performance problems of the men. More than 31 per cent had trouble achieving an orgasm, and nearly six out of 10 admitted to being miserable with their sex lives.
Corriere della Sera, the leading Italian daily, described the findings as "a fatal blow to the [Italians'] reputation for being fiery lovers - a reputation already tarnished some time ago". Dr Raffaella Michielli, one of the GPs involved in the study, blamed "rhythms of work and crises of roles". She said that the negative results of an unhappy sex life could include hypochondria, irritation and tension.
The only consolation to be drawn is that, as those questioned were all visiting their doctors, they might be less representative of the population than the GPs claimed.
This is not the first report throwing doubt on the fabled fiery Italian libido: in 2000 an investigation reported that 60 per cent of men were anxious about their sexual performance, and that 37 per cent of couples had sex once a week.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments