Sex Ed | Chromosomes and the Facts about Gender

By Pat Lynch

Transgender theory is just that, a theory.  It is a psychiatric medical condition with an unclear cause, yet has become a highly controversial issue due to the push from special interest groups in contradiction to science and biology. 

Science and the advanced field of medicine has proven there are only TWO sex chromosomes.  Two X chromosomes in females and an X and a Y in males.  Intersex individuals are actually quite rare and not part of any gender “spectrum”, therefore they are not an appropriate use of rhetoric to propagate an agenda.   Patients with chromosomal disorders including Kleinfelters (XXY), Turner syndrome (Xo), and XXY Syndrome are not a gender spectrum but identify with their genetic gender.  “Regardless of the number of X chromosomes, the presence of a single Y determines the male sex.” (1)  True hermaphroditism and Pseudohermaphroditism are exceedingly rare and medically complex.  The two sex chromosomes, XX in females and XY in males, is present in nearly every single cell in the body, including the brain and hair. (2)  This debunks the argument that someone has a brain or mind different from their body.  There are certainly people who believe that their mind is a different gender than their body, but this is a psychological issue, not a genetic one.

Yet another contradiction to the transgender theory was demonstrated in twin studies.  Identical twins (monozygotic twins conceived with exactly the same DNA) were used to demonstrate if a condition is genetic or environmental since both babies are genetically identical and have the same prenatal exposures. The largest transsexual twin study to date has shown that “28% were concordant for transexualism”(3)- meaning only 28% of the time both twins were transsexual.  Thus 72% of the time, one twin was gender dysphoric, while the other wasn’t which shows that environmental factors trump any biologic predisposition.  It is the non-shared post-birth environmental factors that have a greater influence on gender dysphoria.  This study shows that people are more likely to be “made that way” than “born that way.”

So what is gender dysphoria according to the DSM-5, the Psychiatric diagnostic manual and only guideline for a legitimate diagnosis?  Gender dysphoria in children is a “marked incongruence” between expressed gender and biologic gender for at least 6 months, and requires at least 6 very specific diagnostic criteria.  It indicates more than just a “preference” for the opposite gender, as “there must also be evidence of distress about this incongruence.”(4). This manual also emphasizes the importance of the differential diagnosis (other conditions that have a higher prevalence and may appear incorrectly as gender dysphoria).  The differential diagnosis for gender dysphoria includes non-conformity to gender roles, transvestic disorder, body dysmorphic disorder, schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders, and other clinical presentations.  It also states that “clinically referred children with gender dysphoria show elevated levels of emotional and behavioral problems” and that these need to be addressed as well.   This most current psychiatric manual also states the prevalence ranges from 0.005%-0.014% in males and 0.002%-0.003% in females.  So regardless of what HRC or any other LGBT special interest group states, this is the factual prevalence based on those actually trained to diagnose gender dysphoria.

Regardless of which side you stand on regarding transgender theory, everyone can agree that it is very controversial. Classroom time is precious and should be invested in learning the math, science, reading comprehension and writing skills that our children need to succeed in life. Wasting time on social engineering efforts just divides the community and has a negative impact on learning outcomes and test scores. Gender Theory is a belief system, and imposing it on public school children is a violation of their First Amendment rights.

Belief systems like gender theory should not be taught in public schools as if they are fact.

1. Kumar, V., Abbas, A. K., Fausto, N., Robbins, S. L., & Cotran, R. S. (2005). Robbins and Cotran pathologic basis of disease. Philadelphia: Elsevier Saunders..
2. Kalpit Shah, Charles E. McCormack, and Neil A. Bradbury, “Do You Know The Sex Of Your Cells?” American Journal of Physiology 306, no. 1 (January, 2014), https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpcell.00281.2013.
3. Diamond, M. “Transexuality Among Twins identity concordance, transition, rearing and orientation.”  International Journal of Transgenderism, 14(1), 24-38.
4. American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders(5th ed.)

This story originally published in the  Conejo Valley Observer

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The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official position of Citizens Journal.

Pat Lynch is a resident of Ventura County