A new study revealed that older people who are already on their 70s and 80s are still getting more action than previously thought.

Researchers at Manchester University looked at the data obtained from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) involving more than 7,000 participants. Each participant answered a survey asking them about their sexual activities and problems. The study is the first to look at the sexual behavior of people over age 80.

Initial findings showed that 54 percent of older men and 31 percent of older women admitted to still being sexually active. A third of these sexually active grandpas and grandmas detailed that they do it at least twice a month.

Some of the problems encountered by older people when getting some action includes arousal, achieving orgasm, and erectile difficulties for men. These problems were linked to chronic health conditions and poor health and affect men more than women. Men, too, are more concerned about their performance than the women and this concerns become more common as they age.

But if you think that seniors are always in the mood for sex, one percent of the older men admitted that they feel obligated to do it while the rate is higher for older women at 10 percent.

"We hope our findings improve public health by countering stereotypes and misconceptions about late-life sexuality, and offer older people a reference against which they may relate their own experiences and expectations," said study leader Dr. David Lee, a UK Research Fellow at The University of Manchester's School of Social Sciences, in a news release.

The researchers recommend to doctors to talk to their senior patients and ask them about their sex lives even if they feel that the topic is inappropriate.

"With an ageing population it is important that providers of sexual health services understand the needs of older people in both clinical settings and when developing information and advice. These recent findings now need to be used to improve sexual health advice and information for older people," said Caroline Abrahams, Charity Director at Age UK. She is not part of the study.

The study was published in the Jan. 27 issue of the Archives of Sexual Behavior.