Gay Sex on the Rise, But Coming Out as ‘Gay’ Still Rare

A new study has found that more American adults are admitting to having sex with at least one same-sex partner in their lives.

However, coming out as LGBTQ still takes several years, with the time increasing the younger the person is.

The study published in the Archives of Sexual Behavior found that between 1990 and 2010, 8.7 percent of women and 8.2 percent of men said they had gay sex at least once--up from 3.6 and 4.5 percent, respectively.

Americans have also become more accepting of gay sex. The study found 49 percent of American adults believed same-sex relationships were "not wrong at all" in 2014, up from 13 percent in 2010.

While more Americans are engaging in gay sex, that doesn't necessarily mean Americans are more likely to come out as "gay" or "queer." Dating service Match provided Outexclusive data on coming out that shows only 25 percent of LGBTQ singles told someone about their sexual orientation the same year they came out to themselves.

The average time for adults to come out was about three years. For teenagers, that time extends out to more than seven years.

Taken together, the two surveys show that, while sexual experimentation is becoming more accepted, Americans are still unlikely to identify with a particular sexual label.