Whether out in the sticks or in the city, people’s passion for action with the use of sexual toys is about equal. That’s “one little thing that popped out” from early findings in the National Sex Health Survey, says Joseph Catania, a UCSF researcher, who along with about 10 faculty members conducted a broad-based sex study.

“That was suprising because you’d think people in urban areas are more liberal,” he says. But, then again, there’s not much happening out in the boonies.

The phone survey shows that while there’s no difference in rates of use of sex toys in nonfarm rural areas -- 10 percent -- the use in farm areas is only 7 percent. Catania notes that, “out in rural areas, often what’s not in town you send away for. There’s got to be a lot of tractor parts and sex toys going through the mail.”

Indeed, it’s not like Good Vibrations is nearby. “That’s a great store,” he says.

Catania, who started at UCSF as a graduate student, says the use of sex toys is one health topic where information has been scanty. “There’s never been a broad-scaled survey on the use of sex toys,” he says. “There’s practically zero information.”

This was the fourth such sex study Catania has undertaken. Previous studies have focused on AIDS, STDs and sexual abuse. This particular study also looked at in-home HIV testing and condom slippage and breakage. “We’re just beginning our preliminary analysis,” says Catania.

The scoop on sex toys was released faster than other findings because that part of the study was paid for by a major sex toy manufacturer that was eager to know about the potential health hazards of using its products. In the randomized phone survey, interviewers asked whether people who used sex toys washed them afterward. “What was interesting is that people who had lots of sexual partners often did not wash them,” Catania reports.

Another finding, less startling, shows that the use of sex toys is considerably lower among middle-aged and eldery folks.

1st appeared 8/04/97