Britain’s National Health Service has banned the use of puberty blockers for children seeking treatment for gender dysphoria, citing limited research.
Puberty blockers, or gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogs (GnRHa), are a type of drug that suppresses adolescent sex hormones by continuously stimulating the pituitary gland. From now on, it will only be provided to children in limited ways, such as in clinical trials.
The NHS website states: “Puberty blockers (gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues) cannot be given to children and young people with gender dysphoria or gender dysphoria because there is insufficient evidence of safety and clinical effectiveness.” has been written.
NHS England had previously ordered the London-based Tavistock and Portman Trust’s Gender Identity Clinic to close due to safety concerns.
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Gender-affirming medical interventions include puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones. (St. Petersburg)
Research shows that puberty blockers may be associated with poorer mental health in transgender children.
A 2023 analysis from the University of Essex found that a third of young people with gender dysphoria (GD) experience: decline in mental strength health After taking gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH), also known as puberty blockers.
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The original study was published in 2021 by the NHS Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS) at Tavistock and University College London Hospital (UCLH) and looked at 44 children aged 12 to 15 who took puberty-blocking drugs. was analyzed.
Although all of the children were deemed to be “mentally stable,” all were classified as having gender dysphoria and were “at risk for extreme emotional distress as their adolescent development progresses.” ” the study authors wrote in their diary.
At the time, researchers determined that the drug had no health effects. children’s mental health over a 36-month follow-up period. However, a new analysis of the study found that 34% of transgender youth experienced declines in mental health while taking puberty blockers.
Transgender person in Fairfax County public school restroom (Fox News Digital)
At the same time, 37% reported no change in their mental health and 29% said they noticed an improvement.
Some European countries, such as Finland, Norway and Sweden, have become more cautious about pharmaceutical interventions for children diagnosed with gender dysphoria.
top doctors in sweden medical schoolI published a systematic review of the available medical literature on the provision of puberty blockers to children and stated that their use in the treatment of gender dysphoria should be considered “experimental.”
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Doctors from the Karolinska Institutet published the following paper on April 17 in the journal Acta Paediatrica. GnRH analog It was found to delay bone maturation and mineral deposition, but using cross-sex hormones may only partially reverse it by age 22. However, they noted that the study also has limitations in this regard.
Ricardo Nergard pediatric endocrinologist Researchers from the Karolinska Institutet told Swedish television’s Mission Investigate in 2021 that to minimize the risks of GnRH, doctors try to avoid putting blockers in children for long periods of time. . GnRH is also used to facilitate medical castration for some prostate cancers.
Ricard Nergard (STV/Screenshot)
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“What we call GnRH treatment is chemical castration. affect mental health In an unintended and undesirable way. Therefore, it is very important to inform patients and their families about this,” he said.
“I’m very concerned about it, and I don’t think I’m the only one who feels that,” he added about concerns about GnRH in children.
FOX News’ Melissa Rudy contributed to this report.
