US health agency’s ‘review’ advocates for therapy for youth gender dysphoria

The federal health department released what it described as a “comprehensive review” of pediatric gender dysphoria – advocating for therapy instead of medical care for youth whose gender identity does not match their assigned sex.

The 409-page report claimed that while the harms of such medical treatment are “sparse”, medical treatment should be avoided in favor of therapy for youth diagnosed with gender dysphoria.

“Our duty is to protect our nation’s children – not expose them to unproven and irreversible medical interventions,” said Dr Jay Bhattacharya, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) director. “We must follow the gold standard of science, not activist agendas.”

The report contradicts the guidance of America’s largest medical associations, including the American Medical Association, which urged state governments to “stop interfering in the healthcare of transgender children”. A study published this year found gender-affirming care is rare among US youth, with fewer than one in 1,000 children receiving hormones or puberty blockers.

The review is in response to one of the first executive orders signed by the president, titled: “Protecting children from chemical and surgical mutilation,” which called for a review of evidence by the health department within 90 days.

“Evidence for harms associated with paediatric medical transition in systematic reviews is … sparse, but this finding should be interpreted with caution,” the report states.

“Inadequate harm detection in paediatric gender medicine may reflect the relatively short period of time since the widespread adoption of the medical/surgical treatment model; the failure of existing studies to systematically track and report harms; and publication bias.”

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Source: The Guardian, 1 May 2025