The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a two-year study on Thursday, revealing that more Americans identify as bisexual than ever before.
Between 2011 and 2013, the CDC surveyed more than 9,000 men and women ranging from 18 to 44 years old about their sexual experiences, including sexual preference, attraction, and behavior.
The findings show a small but significant growth in the number of people who identify as bisexual, compared to the previous survey taken between 2006 and 2010.
Participants identifying as bisexual women increased from 2 percent to 5.5 percent. And for men, the number rose from 1.2 percent to 3.9 percent.
More women also said they've had a same-sex experience, up from the previous study's numbers. Whereas 17.4 percent of women said they'd been sexually active with another woman, only 6.2 percent of men said they'd been sexually active with another man.
The report also included information about sexual practices. According to the study, 94.2 percent of women and 92 percent of men have had vaginal intercourse. That number dips slightly when it comes to oral sex, with 86.2 percent of women and 87.4 percent of men responding that they've done it. As for anal, only 35.9 percent of women and 42.3 percent of men have given it a try.
Casey E. Copen, lead author of the study and demographer at the CDC National Center for Health Statistics told CNN that the information can help "to separate out and study these categories, like lesbian and bisexual women and gay and bisexual men, because they all have different health outcomes and different levels of access to health care."
A new study, spanning 2014 and 2015, will be published this fall.
The CDC did not immediately respond to NTRSCTN's request for comment.
