Sex in Ireland might not be as overt as in Amsterdam or Germany but it is still an important part of modern Ireland. From the rise in dogging and popularity of swinging to the porn trends of the Irish and how to get a hook-up, we give you a summary of how the sex stats stack up in Ireland.
Once seen as one of the most conservative nations in Europe, modern Ireland is no longer dominated by the strict moral and social opinions of the Catholic Church. In just a generation, the country has seen a decline in church attendance and the result has been a shift towards a more liberal attitude towards sex, pornography diversity of gender and sexuality.
A largely rural country, The Emerald Isle has a population of 4. Image via Pixabay. The prohibition of divorce is thought to be behind Irelands enthusiasm for swinging. The practice would have allowed couples to indulge in extra-marital relations and despite divorce now being legal, this activity is still popular; particularly in the older generation. In Ireland the average age of swingers is mids compared to Spain or Italy where it is mids.
Dogging in Ireland is a popular pastime. Image via Pornhub. Sex education in Ireland is largely believed to be out of date and no longer in keeping with the progressive reality of the social and moral changes in the country. Once dominated by Catholic teachings, much of the education given out in schools is based on the negative aspects of sex such as crisis pregnancy, disease and risk.
There is also a lack of basic teaching on contraception and safe sex. This has resulted in the country still having quite a high teen pregnancy rate as well as above average STD and HIV infection rates compared to other Western countries. There has been a sharp rise in rates of syphilis, chlamydia and gonorrhoea in Ireland over the last decade. Censorship laws in Ireland still control some aspects of the distribution and production of pornography and it was only in that Playboy was legal to purchase.
