Rise of gender identity disorders among children and adolescents- data from 10 countries

Abstract

There is growing number of publications pointing to the global trend of a significant increase in people who identify differently to their biological sex. Children and adolescents are a particularly sensitive group here, as their identity is still under development. These trends are also reaching Poland. Parents and state services involved in the upbringing and education may be surprised and unprepared. There is small number of analyzes of these trends, especially in the context of the already available knowledge about gender identity disorders and further practical recommendations. The first part of the article presents epidemiological data illustrating the occurrence of gender identity disorders in the population. The methodological challenge was to define a reliable criterion illustrating the strength and scope of the observed changes in epidemiology among children and adolescents and at the same time enabling international comparisons of data from autonomous and world-wide clinics as the problem is the data availability at all. The article presents data on the explosion of gender identity disorders in children and adolescents based on the criterion of number of referrals to youth clinics from 8 countries: Sweden - an increase of 19,700%, Italy - 7,200%, Great Britain - 2,457%, the Netherlands - 904% and outside Europe: Australia - 12,650%, Canada - 538%, USA - 275%, and New Zealand - 187% (the article gives the exact time range). This data were also subjected to qualitative analysis (gender and age of reports, number of referrals versus diagnoses). The explanations given in the scientific literature were also collected and analyzed in relation to the available knowledge about the genesis of gender dysphoria, which, according to research, is predominantly of environmental origin. Both the scale of the trend and additional qualitative analyzes (change of the clinical picture and the inflow to clinics, especially of teenage girls), indicate that this trend cannot be explained only by an increase in social awareness, but also by the inducing influence of media and culture (additional studies that support these conclusions are mentioned). The article provides an overview of the available knowledge in the field of the epidemiology of gender identity disorders, especially in children and adolescents, and helps to define practical steps, especially in the neglected area of ​​prevention, which is crucial from the point of view of parents.