ONE in ten Japanese men are 40-year-old virgins as women choose to have sex with wealthier lovers, a new study reveals.

The virginity rate among straight men has more than doubled since 1992 as "simply put, money talks", researchers said.

Low-income men were up to 20 TIMES more likely to be virgins than their richer and usually older counterparts, but the effect was reversed for women on lower incomes.

Around a quarter of men aged 18 to 39 had never had sex according to the latest official figures available.

Researchers believe Japan is now the worst affected by a global fall in sexual inactivity among developed countries.

Adults in their 30s were up to ten times more likely to be virgins compared to their British, Australian and Americans counterparts - where the rate was between one to five per cent.

Study author Cyrus Ghaznavi, of the University of Tokyo, said: "Although the discussion around cause and effect becomes very complex when considering who becomes sexually experienced and who remains a virgin....simply put, money talks.

"The most informative aspect of sexual inactivity involves those who have opted out of or are, for some reason they cannot control, excluded from the mating market, regardless of their previous sexual experience."

Dr Peter Ueda, also of the University of Tokyo, added: "Previous news reports about virginity rates among Japanese young adults were a bit sensationalist, only included never-married individuals, and did not distinguish virginity rates by age group,

"Sexual inactivity or inexperience, whether voluntary or not, should not be exoticised, ridiculed, or necessarily considered a concern for everyone.

"More research is needed on reasons for sexual inactivity and how mating market dynamics might be evolving due to online dating, shifting expectations in romantic and sexual relationships, and changing values, lifestyles, and labour market trends."

The new study was Japan's first national estimate of virginity and its most detailed analysis of data from the National Fertility Survey of Japan.

It goes further than previous studies by taking into account age and socioeconomic status of people who have never had straight sex.

The researchers estimated one in ten adults in Japan in their 30s have never had vaginal intercourse.

They used statistics from seven surveys involving between 11,000 and 18,000 adults aged 18 to 39-years-old by the Japanese National Institute of Population and Social Security Research from 1992 to 2015.

@stb2 can you think of anyone who's going to be a 40 year old virgin in the basement?

Originally Posted by starrdust

@stb2 can you think of anyone who's going to be a 40 year old virgin in the basement?

Oh I could