Post by Cindy on Aug 7, 2018 12:16:09 GMT -5
Gender Dysphoria and Children: An Endocrinologist's Evaluation of I am Jazz (Excerpts)
by Michael K. Laidlaw
Recently, a group of parents asked me to review the book I Am Jazz to determine whether, from a medical point of view, it is suitable for children to read. They also asked this for the benefit of their school district, given that the topic of childhood gender dysphoria would be discussed at their upcoming school board meeting.
I Am Jazz contains both false information and very troubling omissions. Children who are experiencing gender dysphoria will likely be harmed by this book, as will children who do not have the condition.
Factual Inaccuracies in I Am Jazz
Inaccuracy #1: About a quarter of the way through I Am Jazz, the author states: “I have a girl brain in a boy body.” Jazz later goes to the doctor and relates: “Afterwards, the doctor spoke to my parents and I heard the word ‘transgender’ for the very first time.”
The Facts: The book is written in a way to make you believe that Jazz was diagnosed as transgender. But this is not a diagnosis. The medical diagnosis is gender dysphoria. A biological male feeling and believing himself to be a girl and the distress that accompanies these feelings and beliefs is an example of gender dysphoria (previously known as gender identity disorder). Gender dysphoria is never mentioned in the book.
As a younger child, when Jazz went to see this doctor, he actually had the condition of gender dysphoria. He was not transgender at that point in time. In fact, most children who suffer from gender dysphoria will no longer experience it by the time they become adults. In other words, about 90 percent of biologically male children who believe they are female as young children, when allowed to go through normal puberty and enter adulthood as men, will identify as biological males.
Inaccuracy #2: According to Jazz, “I have a girl brain but a boy body. This is called transgender. I was born this way!”
The Facts: The “born this way” narrative contradicts known medical facts involving twin studies. Gender identity has been defined as the innate sense that one feels one is male or female (or some combination of the two).
If gender identity is determined only by genes, then we would expect that identical twins would profess having the same gender identity nearly 100 percent of the time. This is not the case. In fact, the largest transexual twin study ever conducted included seventy-four pairs of identical twins. They were studied to determine in how many cases both twins would grow up to identify as transgender. In only twenty-one of the seventy-four pairs (28 percent) did both identical twins identify as transgender. This is consistent with the fact that multiple factors play a role in determining gender identity, including psychological and social factors. This study in fact shows that those factors are more important than any potential genetic contribution. Furthermore, no genetic studies have ever identified a transgender gene or genes.
Inaccuracy #3: Jazz says: "I have a girl brain."
The Facts: As to Jazz having a "girl brain," consider, what does the brain comprise? There are billions of neurons that make up this magnificent structure. Neurons are very specialized cells that transmit and store information. The control center, if you will, of every cell in the body is the nucleus, which contains DNA. The DNA is wound up into specialized units called chromosomes. There are 46 chromosomes in every human cell. Two of these are specialized chromosomes called sex chromosomes. Assuming normal development, females have two X chromosomes, and males have one X and one Y chromosome. These sex chromosomes are present in every cell in the body. They remain in the cells from conception until death and do not change.
It follows from this that since Jazz is male, every cell of his brain has an X and a Y chromosome (whereas a girl brain would have two X chromosomes). Therefore Jazz in fact has a "boy brain" right down to the very level of the DNA.
There is further development of the male body at 8 weeks’ gestation within the womb. At this point testosterone is involved in a very intricate process that changes tissues in the pelvis into male genitalia. And we know from the "I am Jazz" show that Jazz has male genitalia. Since the hormone testosterone is carried by the bloodstream throughout the whole body—including the pelvic region as well as the brain—we know that Jazz's brain was also filled with testosterone for development at that time.
This is further evidence that Jazz does not in fact have a "girl brain." He has a boy brain. It is his mind that is giving him the trouble. This is a psychological condition, rather than a biological one.
The authors of the book present false information to children and parents. Kids with gender dysphoria are not born that way. Jazz was born with a male brain that has not changed physically into a female brain. There are numerous psychological and social factors that account for the condition of gender dysphoria in children, some of which are discussed below.
Troubling Omissions
I Am Jazz contains a large number of glaring and very troubling omissions.
Omission #1: The authors fail to mention that Jazz suffers from depression.
At least 70 percent of people with gender dysphoria suffer from mental illness currently or in their lifetime. The most common comorbid mental illnesses include depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and dissociative disorder. .....
Omission #2: The suicide rate of transgender individuals is alarmingly high........
Omission #7: There is a high level of substance abuse among people who identify as transgender.
Omission #8: There are a number of serious health risks associated with taking cross-sex hormones.
Omission #9: The mortality rate of those who identify as transgender is three times higher than that of the general population.
Much more:
www.thepublicdiscourse.com/2018/04/21220/
by Michael K. Laidlaw
Recently, a group of parents asked me to review the book I Am Jazz to determine whether, from a medical point of view, it is suitable for children to read. They also asked this for the benefit of their school district, given that the topic of childhood gender dysphoria would be discussed at their upcoming school board meeting.
I Am Jazz contains both false information and very troubling omissions. Children who are experiencing gender dysphoria will likely be harmed by this book, as will children who do not have the condition.
Factual Inaccuracies in I Am Jazz
Inaccuracy #1: About a quarter of the way through I Am Jazz, the author states: “I have a girl brain in a boy body.” Jazz later goes to the doctor and relates: “Afterwards, the doctor spoke to my parents and I heard the word ‘transgender’ for the very first time.”
The Facts: The book is written in a way to make you believe that Jazz was diagnosed as transgender. But this is not a diagnosis. The medical diagnosis is gender dysphoria. A biological male feeling and believing himself to be a girl and the distress that accompanies these feelings and beliefs is an example of gender dysphoria (previously known as gender identity disorder). Gender dysphoria is never mentioned in the book.
As a younger child, when Jazz went to see this doctor, he actually had the condition of gender dysphoria. He was not transgender at that point in time. In fact, most children who suffer from gender dysphoria will no longer experience it by the time they become adults. In other words, about 90 percent of biologically male children who believe they are female as young children, when allowed to go through normal puberty and enter adulthood as men, will identify as biological males.
Inaccuracy #2: According to Jazz, “I have a girl brain but a boy body. This is called transgender. I was born this way!”
The Facts: The “born this way” narrative contradicts known medical facts involving twin studies. Gender identity has been defined as the innate sense that one feels one is male or female (or some combination of the two).
If gender identity is determined only by genes, then we would expect that identical twins would profess having the same gender identity nearly 100 percent of the time. This is not the case. In fact, the largest transexual twin study ever conducted included seventy-four pairs of identical twins. They were studied to determine in how many cases both twins would grow up to identify as transgender. In only twenty-one of the seventy-four pairs (28 percent) did both identical twins identify as transgender. This is consistent with the fact that multiple factors play a role in determining gender identity, including psychological and social factors. This study in fact shows that those factors are more important than any potential genetic contribution. Furthermore, no genetic studies have ever identified a transgender gene or genes.
Inaccuracy #3: Jazz says: "I have a girl brain."
The Facts: As to Jazz having a "girl brain," consider, what does the brain comprise? There are billions of neurons that make up this magnificent structure. Neurons are very specialized cells that transmit and store information. The control center, if you will, of every cell in the body is the nucleus, which contains DNA. The DNA is wound up into specialized units called chromosomes. There are 46 chromosomes in every human cell. Two of these are specialized chromosomes called sex chromosomes. Assuming normal development, females have two X chromosomes, and males have one X and one Y chromosome. These sex chromosomes are present in every cell in the body. They remain in the cells from conception until death and do not change.
It follows from this that since Jazz is male, every cell of his brain has an X and a Y chromosome (whereas a girl brain would have two X chromosomes). Therefore Jazz in fact has a "boy brain" right down to the very level of the DNA.
There is further development of the male body at 8 weeks’ gestation within the womb. At this point testosterone is involved in a very intricate process that changes tissues in the pelvis into male genitalia. And we know from the "I am Jazz" show that Jazz has male genitalia. Since the hormone testosterone is carried by the bloodstream throughout the whole body—including the pelvic region as well as the brain—we know that Jazz's brain was also filled with testosterone for development at that time.
This is further evidence that Jazz does not in fact have a "girl brain." He has a boy brain. It is his mind that is giving him the trouble. This is a psychological condition, rather than a biological one.
The authors of the book present false information to children and parents. Kids with gender dysphoria are not born that way. Jazz was born with a male brain that has not changed physically into a female brain. There are numerous psychological and social factors that account for the condition of gender dysphoria in children, some of which are discussed below.
Troubling Omissions
I Am Jazz contains a large number of glaring and very troubling omissions.
Omission #1: The authors fail to mention that Jazz suffers from depression.
At least 70 percent of people with gender dysphoria suffer from mental illness currently or in their lifetime. The most common comorbid mental illnesses include depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and dissociative disorder. .....
Omission #2: The suicide rate of transgender individuals is alarmingly high........
Omission #7: There is a high level of substance abuse among people who identify as transgender.
Omission #8: There are a number of serious health risks associated with taking cross-sex hormones.
Omission #9: The mortality rate of those who identify as transgender is three times higher than that of the general population.
Much more:
www.thepublicdiscourse.com/2018/04/21220/
!!
