Attitudes and sociocultural factors influencing vaginal douching behavior among English-speaking Latinas.
OBJECTIVE
To describe the practice/correlates of douching among a national sample of English-speaking Latinas.


METHODS
Three hundred twenty-five (325) computer-assisted telephone interviews were completed. Analyses compare ever douchers to never douchers and identify correlates of douching.


RESULTS
Of respondents, 50% had ever douched; 15% douched at least monthly. Douching practices among respondents were similar to those of other groups. Age at sexual debut was the strongest correlate of ever douching. Regular douching significantly increased as the perceived benefits of douching and the number of sources recommending douching increased.


CONCLUSIONS
Interventions to prevent douching and to support cessation should be tailored to characteristics and perceptions of Latinas. Targeting secondary audiences may prove valuable.
De La Cruz
Natalie
N
University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health, Department of Health Behavior, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA. ndelacruz@uab.edu
Cornish
Disa L
DL
McCree-Hale
Renicha
R
Annang
Lucy
L
Grimley
Diane M
DM
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health / Q000208:ethnology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003466:Cultural Characteristics; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D014481:United States; D044364:Vaginal Douching; D055815:Young Adult