France’s Academy of Medicine Urges ‘Great Medical Caution’ in Blocking Puberty
The Biden administration acts as if “the science” supports “gender affirming care” — i.e., puberty blocking, hormone administration, and even mastectomies and genital surgeries — as clearly the best approaches to treating children and adolescents diagnosed with gender dysphoria.
But that isn’t true. The brakes are being put on this approach in the U.K., Sweden, and Finland. And now, France’s National Academy of Medicine is holding up a big “SLOW DOWN!” sign on joining the transgender moral panic. Specifically, it warns that these interventions might not be warranted and have potentially significant deleterious potentialities. Moreover, there has been a worrying explosive increase in the number of cases. From the translated press release:
While this condition has long been recognized, a sharp increase in demand for medical interventions has been observed first in North America, then in Northern Europe, and, more recently, in France, particularly among children and adolescents. A recent study of a number of high schools in Pittsburgh revealed a prevalence that is clearly higher than previously estimated in the United States: 10% of students declared themselves to be transgender or non-binary or were unsure of their gender. In 2003, the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne diagnosed only one child with gender dysphoria, whereas today it treats nearly 200.
It used to be infinitesimal! More:
Whatever the mechanisms involved in adolescents — excessive engagement with social media, greater social acceptability, or influence by those in one’s social circle — this epidemic-like phenomenon manifests itself in the emergence of cases or even clusters of cases in the adolescents’ immediate surroundings. This primarily social problem is due, in part, to the questioning of an overly dichotomous view of gender identity by some young people.
“Epidemic-like”: exactly! Much of this surely comes from outside influences acting on these children. We have certainly seen that in the U.K. where teachers are accused of convincing autistic students that they are transgender.
The French National Academy warns that puberty blocking and surgeries should be approached with great care and caution because of the potential for harm (my emphasis):
Great medical caution must be taken in children and adolescents, given the vulnerability, particularly psychological, of this population and the many undesirable effects and even serious complications that can be caused by some of the therapies available. In this regard, it is important to recall the recent decision (May 2021) of the Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm to prohibit the use of puberty blockers.
If France allows the use of puberty blockers or cross-sex hormones with parental authorization and no age limitations, the greatest caution is needed in their use, taking into account the side effects such as the impact on growth, bone weakening, risk of sterility, emotional and intellectual consequences and, for girls, menopause-like symptoms.
As for surgical treatments, specifically mastectomy, which is allowed in France at the age of 14, and surgeries relating to the external genitalia (vulva, penis), it must be emphasized that these procedures are irreversible.
But here’s the thing. According to the academy, it is hard to discern which patients have a permanent condition and which only transitory:
When medical care is provided for this reason, it is essential to ensure medical and psychological support, first for the affected children and adolescents, but also for their parents, especially since there is no test to distinguish between persisting gender dysphoria and transient adolescent dysphoria. Moreover, the risk of over-diagnosis is real, as evidenced by the growing number of young adults wishing to detransition. It is, therefore, appropriate to extend the phase of psychological care as much as possible.
Joe Biden said recently that he “has the back” of minors with gender dysphoria, as his administration pursues policies across the DOJ and HHS that seek to force doctors to provide gender-transition interventions to minors and keep states from outlawing them. In actuality, France’s National Academy has the far more loving, protective, and rational approach.
In any event, to say the least, “the science” in this field is anything but settled.
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