President Donald Trump courageously decided to have his administration take on the gender wars that had been allowed to fester and grow under his predecessor. One of his earliest executive orders mandated an end to chemical, medicinal, and surgical interventions on gender-confused children. Trump also directed his Department of Health and Human Services to study the scientific efficacy of these medical interventions.
Well, HHS just released a 409-page report finding that there is no strong evidence supporting so-called “gender-affirming care” as an effective way to treat minors suffering from gender confusion.
According to National Review’s Abigail Anthony, “The HHS report is an umbrella review of 17 preexisting systematic reviews, with some reviews encompassing more than one topic — two on the effects of social transition, nine on puberty-blocking drugs, eight on cross-sex hormones, three on surgery, and five on psychotherapy.” In other words, it was thorough and covered most of the topics related to the gender mutilation debate vis-à-vis children. Because of that, this article will cover some points that stood out.
The report talked extensively about the fact that many of these minors struggling with gender confusion presented with other mental struggles such as anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation. When those mental distresses were treated with psychotherapy, the gender confusion seemed to vanish as well. Ironically, gender activists regard psychotherapy as “conversion therapy” and have actively tried to ban it.
The report also addressed the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) and the lack of scientific evidence to support its assertions and medical recommendations. HHS alleges that WPATH suppressed studies that disproved its theories.
One particular glaring error in all the studies in support of gender-affirming care is that they ignore or dismiss the negative side effects. As the report put it, “The absence of evidence of harms in published studies is not equivalent to evidence of absence of harms.”
This same illogic is the reason that Los Angeles gender clinic doctor Johanna Olson-Kennedy refused to publish her own study — because it didn’t show improved mental health after kids were put on puberty blockers.
Finally, while the HHS report was extremely dense and chock-full of different elements in the whole “transing the kids” debate, it credited, in particular, European countries that have been debunking the junk science and poor therapeutic practices for children presenting with gender confusion. The report concurs with others like the UK’s Cass Review, which changed the standard of care for gender dysphoric patients.
Trump’s HHS has confirmed what those of us with common sense have been screaming from the rooftops for years: “Gender-affirming care” does not help struggling children. In fact, it irreparably harms them and doesn’t achieve what it promises (a change in sex). Children have been used as gullible lab rats to forward a destructive movement within the culture.
National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya says: “Our duty is to protect our nation’s children — not expose them to unproven and irreversible medical interventions. We must follow the gold standard of science, not activist agendas.”
While this HHS report presents all the receipts with regard to the terrible standards of care represented by the “gender affirmation” method, leftist rags like The Washington Post are still quick to point out that the authors didn’t publish their names. There is a very good reason for this. Transgender activists have a history of acting violently toward those who dare to shatter their fantasies. Dr. Hilary Cass in the UK had to stop using public transportation because of the threats she received in the wake of her findings.
Amazingly, the previous administration — complete with Dr. “Rachel” Levine as the assistant secretary of HHS — claimed to be followers of The Science™, but it is Trump’s HHS that is actually following the science when it comes to denouncing gender-affirming care for minors.
