The gender epidemic

Time for reflection or more gender clinics?

In all countries of the Western world, there has been an extreme increase in people attending gender clinics. For example, in the United Kingdom, from 77 in 2009 to 2,590 in 2018. This trend is also present in Belgium. The centre for Sexology & Gender at the UZ Gent received 694 registrations in the first nine months of this year, which is already more than in 2020, which was also a record year (source: De Zondag 10 October 2021).

This is explained by the increasing concern and attention for trans people. Certainly, there is no denying that the media, which only talks about success stories, plays an important role in the general acceptance of the transgender story, and people looking for a solution. The only answer to the now increasing waiting lists is the establishment of new gender clinics.

However, one would expect that with a change of this magnitude, as with any other health phenomenon (e.g. increase in cancer or diabetes), there would be a need to investigate and understand the cause. The exponential increase in adolescent and young adult women alone should raise critical questions. Questions such as, why do we not see a proportional coming out among middle-aged women, and why is it now mostly women where it used to be middle-aged men?

We also now know that it is often accompanied by other psychological problems (OCD, anxiety and depression, etc.), so why is this not taken seriously? Moreover, a study has shown that the risk of suicide for those undergoing a transition is 19 times higher than for the general population. There is also no evidence that transitioning promotes long-term mental health.

In a health system supported by society, how can we continue to justify this? Is it not time for reflection? Setting up new gender clinics will irreparably harm and medicalise even more people, depriving them of the real care they deserve.