Covid hindered young people's love lives

The coronavirus restrictions significantly hindered the love lives of young people in the Netherlands, knowledge cent Rutgers and Soa Aids Nederland found in a new study. The restrictions limited the possibilities to meet a new love, and young people were cautious about dating and sex for fear of getting the coronavirus, the researchers found, AD reports.

Many young people called the restrictions' impact on their sex- and love lives annoying. The curfew, in particular, was a low point. The coronavirus measures left many young people feeling isolated. A third said the lack of encounters left them with depressive feelings. Overall, young people describe the past two years as "boring."

"It wasn't so much a lack of sex as a lack of opportunities to meet new people and fall in love," Rutgers researcher Hanneke de Graaf said to the newspaper. "It is vital for young people to continue to meet and explore each other physically."

Out of boredom and the need for intimacy, young people often entered into a relationship earlier than they would have done otherwise, the researchers found. According to the researchers, these "corona relationships" arose from the idea that "then at least I have someone."