Sex during bad economy complicated, News Record Column

A sour economy provides interesting twists in social behavior, with the latest fascination of many media outlets being the rise in condom sales during the recession.

Theories for this rise include sex drive being immune to the recession, at-home entertainment being cheaper than out-of-home entertainment and an increased rationality about having an extra dependant in the budget, said William Saletan of Slate magaine.

But what really constitutes the rise in condom sales? For one, condoms are cheaper than birth control pills; 23 percent of women are having a harder time affording birth control, according to a Washington Post survey.

The problem there exists with reliability: Statistically, condoms are a tad more risky than birth control, but is that extra risk worth the extra cost of birth control?

Let?s be clear: More condom sales does not necessarily translate to more sex.
?In this economy, even sex doesn?t sell,? said The Los Angeles Times in reference to plummeting profits of Nevada brothels.

It?s also worth noting adult entertainment mogul Larry Flint did request a government bailout, even though his industry, as he puts it, is ?in no fear of collapse.?

Sex may be a cheap form of entertainment, but stress and other factors specific to each couple probably determine the sex drive.

Couples are looking to save money now, so they purchase the cheapest method of preventing pregnancy. Increased use and sales of protection could also be tied to the expense of raising children.

Having one more child can put a middle class home down a rung on the financial ladder. Not only is the amount of time a burden, but the cost of education is huge. We do not need extra hands on the farm today; the return of investment on a child is far less than ever.

Parents are decreasingly relying on their children to take care of them into old age, so why would having many children be a top priority? What once was just one extra mouth to feed in exchange for 10 years of labor has now become a huge expense with no financial benefits.

The estimated cost of raising a child born in 2007 to the age of 18 soared from about $25,000 in 1960 to $205,000, according to the Time magazine article, ?Million dollar babies.?

And that does not include a college education, which, if paid for by parents, can make children even more expensive.

People make quick, intuitive decisions: Buying condoms in the short term is cheap compared to the little bit of extra risk added by switching from birth control. But, the increase in sales could also be a result of how expensive children have become.

More couples could be purchasing protection that were not before and spending a tad more in the short term to avoid a huge cost for life.

Our generation will most likely continue the trend of fewer children per couple. We will use more protection as a result of an extra bill our parents may not have had: the college loan payment.

Thousands of variables can be used to measure a difference in couple?s love lives, but too much complexity is a weakness.

Almost everyone measures cost-benefit in the blink of an eye, and in one blink the cost of contraception compared to the cost of a child could easily cause the 5 percent increase in condom sales for last quarter.