Puberty | Jotup

The real threat to gender-diverse children is the politicization of care issues like puberty blockers and detransition

Retrieved on:

Martedì, Febbraio 13, 2024

“I think that we should protect children and their ability to make adult decisions when they’re adults,” Poilievre said.

Key Points:

“I think that we should protect children and their ability to make adult decisions when they’re adults,” Poilievre said.
Poilievre is one among many politicians to wade into debates surrounding gender-affirming health care in recent years.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has proposed controversial policies that would affect gender-diverse youth, including prohibiting puberty blockers for children aged 15 and under.

Fertility and gender-affirming medicine

Two opinion columnists recently wrote about gender-affirming care for minors, making drastically different remarks about the fertility implications of this care.
Research on fertility outcomes is lackluster to begin with, but outcomes are highly sensitive to whether puberty blockers were taken prior to starting cross-sex hormones and the stage of puberty.
However, for transgender people who begin cross-sex hormones after undergoing at least some natal puberty, fertility does not seem to be permanently affected.

Puberty blockers

When puberty blockers were first tested for use with gender dysphoric youth, transgender adults were being coercively sterilized.
In fact, fertility is not the only issue at stake with puberty blockers.

A team of Dutch clinicians who were among the first to offer transgender children puberty blockers recently acknowledged that these drugs may not be just a “pause button” to explore identity, as originally intended.
But there are also major consequences involved in delaying or withholding treatment with puberty blockers, which could hurt transgender girls more than boys.
Poilievre gives the wrong impression by saying that “we should protect the rights of parents to make their own decision with regards to their children,” because, given the age of the child, parents are typically involved in the decision to start puberty blockers.

Detransition debate

Detransition also tops the list.
On one side, opponents of gender-affirming care distort studies to argue detransition has reached epidemic proportions and draw from testimonies of regretful detransitioners as a “cautionary tale against medical transitioning.” Proponents retort by dismissing detransition either by alluding to its “rarity,” using outdated and flawed studies, or by decoupling the experience from regret.
As a result, the public is exposed to two different sets of “facts,” none of which reflect the heterogeneity that we and others have encountered in researching detransition — different psychological, medical and social motives for detransitioning; a range of emotions including regret, resilience, and satisfaction; expansive patterns of identity discovery and fluidity.

Guidelines, dilemmas and the need for high-quality research

But that does not mean the science is settled or that the medicine has no room for improvement.
Gender-affirming care is riddled with ethical dilemmas that have spilled over into an explosive political situation.
The changing landscape of transgender health care, debates about puberty blockers and detransition are all low-hanging fruit for opportunistic politicians like Poilievre.

He is a member of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH).
Pablo Expósito-Campos receives funding from the Predoctoral Research Fellowship Program of the Government of the Basque Country, Spain.

‘It needs to be talked about earlier’: some children get periods at 8, years before menstruation is taught at school

Retrieved on:

Giovedì, Febbraio 8, 2024

You might need to change your pad during class and explain to your friends why you are not going to the swimming carnival.

Key Points:

You might need to change your pad during class and explain to your friends why you are not going to the swimming carnival.
You might be scared you will bleed through your uniform because there aren’t any sanitary bins in the junior years’ bathroom.
It shows how schools can act as gatekeepers of knowledge about this essential and very normal part of human development.

Period shame exists but is not inevitable

Shame about periods has existed in many parts of the world for centuries.
A 2021 survey found 29% of 659 menstruating Australian students aged ten to 18 were concerned they would be teased at school for having their period.
A 2022 Australian survey of 410 university students who menstruate found only 16.2% felt completely confident in managing their periods at university.

What is taught in Australian schools?

We can assume schools would cover it under topics such as “understand the physical […] changes that are occurring for them”.
But without explicit mention to menstruation or periods, it is likely what is being taught across classrooms in Australia is variable and insufficient.

Our research

We asked staff about their awareness of students who have experienced early onset menstruation, how their students are educated about periods, and what support is available to them.
Staff spoke about how students who menstruated early “felt isolated” and voiced the need for earlier “matter-of-fact” menstruation education.
However, several participants shared apprehension around having discussions about periods with young students.

Can we tell boys about this?

As one teacher told us:
It is a discussion that’s been done where they don’t really include the boys in it […].
It is a discussion that’s been done where they don’t really include the boys in it […].
School staff also raised concerns that teaching boys about menstruation might present an opportunity for bullying or teasing.

What needs to happen instead?

But it also showed how the issue is driven by perceptions of children’s capacity to learn about periods, based on their age and gender.
This research highlights the need for the Australian curriculum to introduce specific menstruation education by at least Year 3 or earlier.

Jessica Shipman receives funding from Flinders Foundation. Olivia Bellas does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

Alberta’s new policies are not only anti-trans, they are anti-evidence

Retrieved on:

Lunedì, Febbraio 5, 2024

Like other experts, we worried these policies would mimic the parental rights legislation recently introduced in Saskatchewan and New Brunswick.

Key Points:

Like other experts, we worried these policies would mimic the parental rights legislation recently introduced in Saskatchewan and New Brunswick.
Smith has unveiled a suite of policies that directly attack trans and gender-diverse children and youth in Alberta.
As we explain below, these policies are at odds with research about gender-affirming care, curriculum and sports.

Evidence on trans-affirming care

Like all medicines, side effects are a risk but researchers caution against fear-mongering in response to gender-affirming care.
The evidence about trans-affirming health care for youth is clear — it saves lives.
Rather than restrict life-saving medical care, experts in fertility medicine call for increased accessibility for trans people to fertility services.

Sex education evidence

Classroom instruction on gender, sexuality and sexual orientation also now requires parental notification and opt-in.
Finally, third-party resource materials on gender, sexuality and sexual orientation in schools need to be pre-approved by the ministry to make sure they’re “age-appropriate.” Education experts agree that what is needed to protect youth — including cisgender and heterosexual kids — from potential abuse is robust and consent-based sexual health education.
Youth have the right to knowledge and skills about their bodies, consent, safe/unsafe touch and healthy relationships.

Risk of parental, peer rejection

This process essentially requires schools to “out” youth to their parents, who may reject their children.
Smith incorrectly suggests that parental rejection of 2SLGBTQIA+ kids is rare.
For those who experience family rejection, the rates of suicide are incredibly high.

Trans athletes evidence

Smith’s policy will also ban trans girls and women athletes from participating in competitive women’s sports.
Some scientists maintain that trans women and girls have no “biological advantage” over cisgender girls and women.
A book on the topic that reviewed evidence on testosterone determined there is no direct relation between the hormone and athletic performance.

What’s the truth?

In contrast, trans youth who are affirmed in schools, health care and in sports have better self-confidence and relationships with their parents.
Smith has incorrectly warned there are risks associated with affirmation and inclusion in schools for trans kids.
It includes more information on clinical guidelines for the prescription of puberty blockers for the purposes of gender-affirming care.

Corinne L. Mason receives funding from SSHRC. Leah Hamilton receives funding from SSHRC.

New research shows some gains but fresh difficulties in combating child sexual abuse

Retrieved on:

Lunedì, Febbraio 5, 2024

The best evidence of this comes from the 2023 Australian Child Maltreatment Study (ACMS), which surveyed 8,500 Australians aged 16 and over.

Key Points:

The best evidence of this comes from the 2023 Australian Child Maltreatment Study (ACMS), which surveyed 8,500 Australians aged 16 and over.
The ACMS found 28.5% of the national population has experienced sexual abuse before age 18 by any person (adult or adolescent).
Reducing child sexual abuse is a major challenge for public health and gender equality.
This means not everyone who experiences child sexual abuse has the same outcomes.

Who inflicts child sexual abuse?

Our analysis identified four different types of adult who inflict child sexual abuse:
We also identified four classes of perpetrators aged under 18:
This is important because while it is well understood that adults inflict child sexual abuse, discussions about its prevention often overlook that it is often inflicted by people aged under 18, and do not consider perpetration by specific groups.

Read more:
Major study reveals two-thirds of people who suffer childhood maltreatment suffer more than one kind

Child sexual abuse by adults

Child sexual abuse by adults has always been and remains a major problem.
The ACMS found a devastating 18.5% of all Australians aged 16 and over had experienced child sexual abuse by an adult.
However, child sexual abuse by adults has declined, especially by parents/adult family members and institutional adults.

Child sexual abuse by adolescents

Worryingly, child sexual abuse by adolescents aged under 18 has increased in recent years. The ACMS found 18.2% of Australians aged 16-24 (nearly 1 in 5) experienced sexual abuse by an adolescent before age 18. The majority is inflicted against girls by:
male adolescents the victim knew, and who were not their current or former boyfriend
current or former boyfriends.

These conditions have driven major initiatives such as Teach Us Consent and have galvanised other new approaches to reduce teen sexual violence.
Read more:
There are reports some students are making sexual moaning noises at school.

From evidence to opportunity

But this evidence provides an opportunity for those involved in its prevention and the community to reduce sexual violence in the next generation.
However, increased child sexual abuse perpetration by males in this age group highlights a contemporary normalisation of sexual violence.

What more can be done?

Educating children about their bodies, healthy relationships, consent, sex, empathy and gender equality instils key prosocial attributes required to reduce sexual violence.
Governments also play a huge role in implementing preventive public health approaches.
In a landmark advance, the Australian government recently committed to mandating consent education in the National Curriculum.

Shaping our future

We must change the still too-common sense of entitlement to girls’ and women’s bodies.
Instead, we must help boys and men develop more empathy and respect for girls and women.

Ben Mathews is the Lead Investigator of the Australian Child Maltreatment Study (ACMS). The ACMS received research funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council, and additional funding and contributions were provided by the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Department of Social Services, the Australian Institute of Criminology. Chanel Contos is the founder of Teach Us Consent.

Singles in America: Match Releases Largest Study on US Single Population for 13th Year

Retrieved on:

Mercoledì, Gennaio 24, 2024

DALLAS, Jan. 24, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Match today released findings from its 13th annual Singles in America study, the nation's largest and most comprehensive annual scientific study of single adults, more than one-third of the U.S. adult population. This year's study asked a national representative sample of 5,000+ singles their thoughts on dating and AI, non-monogamous relationships, comprehensive sex education, and more. Having run annually over the past 13 years, the study encompasses insights from 70,000 singles to date, showcasing major trends and new developments in sex, love and marriage.

Key Points:

DALLAS, Jan. 24, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Match today released findings from its 13th annual Singles in America study, the nation's largest and most comprehensive annual scientific study of single adults, more than one-third of the U.S. adult population.
This year's study asked a national representative sample of 5,000+ singles their thoughts on dating and AI, non-monogamous relationships, comprehensive sex education, and more.
Today's singles are hungry for tools to help them find and maintain human connection."
13% of singles (14% of men and 12% of women) also report using condoms more often since the overturning.

Year 9 is often seen as the 'lost year'. Here's what schools are trying to keep kids engaged

Retrieved on:

Lunedì, Gennaio 8, 2024

Teacher, Map, Self-harm, Interview, Learning, Viscount Gage, Student, School, Research, Health, Humanities, Goal, Program, Puberty, Absenteeism, Sleep, Bullying, Radio, Drawing, Curriculum, Exercise, Child, Tutoring

Whatever the reason, many high school teachers say something significant happens to school engagement levels around Year 9.

Key Points:

Whatever the reason, many high school teachers say something significant happens to school engagement levels around Year 9.
Read more:
20% of Australian students don't finish high school: non-mainstream schools have a lot to teach us about helping kids stay

Lost, disengaged and ‘in never-never land’

One Year 9 teacher told me students at this age see themselves
as that in-between stage.
What if I’m neither?’ Students at this age often strongly feel they no longer fit in.
Year 9 teachers described this year to me as “the lost year”, where students often drift off to “never-never land”.
This suggests an opportunity for schools to design their Year 9 curriculum to help these students see the relevance of school.

Specialist Year 9 programs

Some schools have implemented specialist programs for Year 9.
Some have large-scale residential programs, where students live and learn away from home for extended periods.
Other programs focus on students learning about and through their local communities.
Other programs are conducted entirely offsite over the course of a term.

A different approach

In the Renewal program, the careers unit and mock job interviews are done at the start of the year to support students to get part-time employment.
Students are given more agency than a traditional approach would allow.
School work might be done, for example, via essay-writing, painting, drawing, in the form of a radio interview or other formats.
The kids have more opportunity in regards to choosing their own destination […] to be able to find their own learning.

Resonating with students’ lives

The success of Year 9 programs hinges on a tailored curriculum that resonates with students’ lives, taught by teachers dedicated to fostering strong connections.
Read more:
'I would like to go to university': flexi school students share their goals in Australia-first survey

Josh Ambrosy is on the board of Outdoors Victoria, the state not-for-profit peak body. He runs professional development sessions related to Year 9 programs and other middle years curricula.

ALWAYS DISCREET PARTNERS WITH TARAJI P. HENSON TO TACKLE A COMMON BUT OFTEN-UNADDRESSED PERIMENOPAUSE SYMPTOM - BLADDER LEAKS

Retrieved on:

Mercoledì, Gennaio 3, 2024

Menopause, Always, Woman, Press release, Discreet, Always (brand), Education, Incontinence, Puberty, North American Menopause Society, Exercise, Senior, Dietary supplement

CINCINNATI, Jan. 3, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Always Discreet, Procter & Gamble's bladder leak protection brand, is on a mission to empower women to live life to the fullest by partnering with Oscar-nominated actress, producer and mental health advocate Taraji P. Henson, to bring awareness and normalization to the perimenopause journey and the common experience that often goes unaddressed – bladder leaks.

Key Points:

A survey conducted by Always Discreet found that 54% of women who experience bladder leaks say they didn't know what was happening to their body when their bladder leaks first began.
Together, the women candidly speak about the symptoms they expected, as well as the ones they didn't such as bladder leaks.
Nearly three-quarters of women who experience bladder leaks (73%) avoided going somewhere or doing something because of their bladder leaks.
77% of women who experience bladder leaks said it negatively affected their ability to exercise or other physical activity.

GenSci Launches Global Innovation Hub in Shanghai

Retrieved on:

Domenica, Dicembre 24, 2023

Science, Woman, Research, Health, Transgender hormone therapy, Obesity, Allergy, Puberty, Investment, Body image, ADC, Fine chemical

SHANGHAI, Dec. 23, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Changchun GeneScience Pharmaceutical ("GenSci"), a subsidiary of Changchun High-Tech Industries (Group), hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for its new global headquarters and research & development (R&D) center at Shanghai Zhangjiang International Medical Park on December 15th. This facility is on track to be fully operational by 2027, with a capacity to accommodate 2,000 R&D professionals.

Key Points:

SHANGHAI, Dec. 23, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Changchun GeneScience Pharmaceutical ("GenSci"), a subsidiary of Changchun High-Tech Industries (Group), hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for its new global headquarters and research & development (R&D) center at Shanghai Zhangjiang International Medical Park on December 15th.
Since its founding in 1997, GenSci has introduced several groundbreaking therapies, including the GenSci Recombinant Human Growth Hormone, GenSci Heng Recombinant Human Follicle-Stimulating Hormone and Jinfuning Recombinant Human Granulocyte-Stimulating Factor Gel.
GenSci has ramped up its R&D investments to address the unmet health needs of women and children.
"GenSci has built a globally innovative and competitive R&D product pipeline," Dr. Jin Lei, Chief Scientist and General Manager of GenSci declared.

GenSci Launches Global Innovation Hub in Shanghai

Retrieved on:

Sabato, Dicembre 23, 2023

SHANGHAI, Dec. 22, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Changchun GeneScience Pharmaceutical ("GenSci"), a subsidiary of Changchun High-Tech Industries (Group), held a groundbreaking ceremony for its new global headquarters and research & development (R&D) center at Shanghai Zhangjiang International Medical Park on December 15th. With an increasing focus on women`s and children`s health, the Chinese government has been intensifying efforts to improve healthcare services for these demographics, embedding their care within the wider framework of the country's economic and social development policies. The establishment of the R&D center sets the stage for GenSci to further advance the convergence of industry, academia, research and the medical community. By leveraging cutting-edge R&D capabilities and the application of artificial intelligence technologies, GenSci is well-positioned to provide premium health solutions for women and children. The initiative aligns with GenSci's commitment to harnessing science and technology to protect and enhance the health of these vulnerable groups.

Key Points:

SHANGHAI, Dec. 22, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Changchun GeneScience Pharmaceutical ("GenSci"), a subsidiary of Changchun High-Tech Industries (Group), held a groundbreaking ceremony for its new global headquarters and research & development (R&D) center at Shanghai Zhangjiang International Medical Park on December 15th.
Integrating AI technology, GenSci covers the entire drug innovation process, from initial design and screening to process development and formulation.
GenSci has formed enduring and robust partnerships with nearly 20 prominent universities, including Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Zhejiang University.
The groundbreaking of GenSci's global innovation hub and R&D center enpowers the company to fully utilize its expertise in gynecology and pediatrics.

United States Sex Reassignment Hormone Therapy (Male-To-Female, Female-To-Male) Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report 2023-2030 - ResearchAndMarkets.com

Retrieved on:

Martedì, Dicembre 12, 2023

Sex Reassignment Hormone Therapy Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Gender Transition (Male-To-Female, Female-To-Male), By Type (Puberty Blockers, Estrogen), By Distribution Channel, And Segment Forecasts, 2023 - 2030" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

Key Points:

Sex Reassignment Hormone Therapy Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Gender Transition (Male-To-Female, Female-To-Male), By Type (Puberty Blockers, Estrogen), By Distribution Channel, And Segment Forecasts, 2023 - 2030" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.
The U. S. sex reassignment hormone therapy market size is expected to reach USD 2.23 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 4.05%
The growth is attributed to the increasing awareness about sex reassignment treatments and the rising patient pool seeking gender affirmation surgery and hormonal therapy.
Hormone therapy is a more economical solution than surgical procedures in gender-affirming care.
The increased awareness about available options for sex reassignment treatment, supportive governmental regulations for the LGBTQ community, and the emergence of novel hormonal therapies with enhanced efficacy are expected to drive the growth of the U. S. market for sex reassignment hormone therapy.