Sexual health education improves psychological health, social well-being, and sexual self-efficacy among married older women: a randomized controlled trial.

Authors

Samira Shojaee, Safoura Taheri, Sanaz Aazami

Published in

Scientific reports. Jul 19, 2026. Epub Jul 19, 2026.

Abstract

Sexual health education is an essential yet often neglected component of care for menopausal and postmenopausal women. Hormonal and psychosocial changes associated with aging may adversely affect psychological health, social well-being, and sexual self-efficacy, while many older women receive limited guidance in managing these concerns. Structured sexual health education may help address these unmet needs and promote healthy aging. This study evaluated the effect of a sexual health education program on psychological health, social well-being, and sexual self-efficacy among older women. This randomized controlled study (ISRCTN16519569) was conducted among 110 women aged 65 years and older recruited from urban health centers in Ilam, Iran. Participants were randomly assigned to an intervention group (n = 55) or a control group (n = 55). Eligibility criteria included being married, cognitively intact, and physically able to participate. The intervention group received six 30-minute face-to-face sexual health education sessions over a three-week period, together with an educational booklet, whereas the control group received routine health services. Outcomes were assessed at baseline and four weeks after the intervention using the Goldberg General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28), the Keyes and Shapiro Social Well-Being Scale, and the Vaziri and Lotfi Sexual Self-Efficacy Scale. Data were analyzed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), controlling for baseline scores. No significant differences were observed between groups at baseline (p > 0.05). After adjustment for baseline values, participants in the intervention group demonstrated significantly higher post-intervention scores for psychological health, social well-being, and sexual self-efficacy compared with the control group (all p < 0.001). The intervention effects were large across all outcome measures. Participation in a structured sexual health education program was associated with improved psychological health, social well-being, and sexual self-efficacy among older women. These findings suggest that sexual health education may represent a useful strategy for supporting healthy aging; however, further studies with longer follow-up periods and more diverse populations are warranted.

PMID:
42472996
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 20 Jul 2026.

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