Medicine:LGBT life expectancy

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Short description: Lifespan of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender populations

The life expectancy of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people is a subject of research. Early research by the Cameron group purporting to find a significantly shorter life expectancy among homosexuals is not considered reliable, although it has been widely misused and cited.[1][2][3][4] During the AIDS crisis, a loss in average life expectancy was observed among gay men.[3][2]

In the late 2000s, research suggested "the claims of drastically increased overall mortality in gay men and lesbians appear unjustified".[5] As of 2020, data from Sweden found no gap in mortality between homosexual and heterosexual individuals, although mortality may be higher in bisexuals.[6]

There is not yet reliable research on life expectancy of transgender people,[7] although false statistics have been widely circulated.[8]

Gay and bisexual life expectancy

Flawed claims of significantly shorter life expectancy

Cameron studies

Early studies by the controversial psychologist Paul Cameron purported to find that homosexuals had a life expectancy 20 to 30 years shorter than heterosexuals; however his methodology and flaws make his findings unreliable.[9][10] Cameron's methodology was described as "just ridiculous" by demographer Nicholas Eberstadt at the conservative American Enterprise Institute; and the epidemiologist Morten Frisch described his work ''of such a grave nature that no decent peer-reviewed scientific journal should let it pass for publication".[2] Cameron had relied on newspaper obituaries which clearly referred to sexual orientation.[9] In the 1980s, Cameron was expelled from the American Psychological Association for violations.[2]

Hogg et al.

Another study published in 1998 by Hogg et al. modelled the impact of AIDS deaths in Vancouver between 1987 and 1992, estimating a loss of life expectancy in the gay and bisexual male population of between 8 and 20 years.[2] The authors released a statement in 2001 clarifying that their findings would no longer be relevant as AIDS deaths had fallen significantly,[3] primarily due to antiretroviral therapy.[2]

Misuse

Despite the flaws of Paul Cameron's research, and the limitations of the Hogg study, many anti-gay groups and individuals have cited these studies to characterize homosexuality as inherently dangerous or as an unhealthy "lifestyle".[11][2] Paul Cameron's research group claimed that homosexuality is "as dangerous to public health as drug abuse, prostitution, and smoking".[5] In 1997, the U.S. secretary of education William Bennett claimed that gay men die at 43 years during a television interview, a figure from a flawed Cameron study.[4][12]

In response to frequent misuse, Hogg et al. noted their findings would no longer be applicable in 2001.[3] In 2003, the economist Walter E. Williams cited the Hogg study to argue that homosexuals should pay more for life insurance, stating "that's a lifestyle shortening of life expectancy greater than obesity and tobacco use".[13] In 2012, the Australian Anglican Archbishop Peter Jensen claimed that gay people had "significantly shorter life".[1]

Frisch 2009 and 2013 studies

The Danish epidemiologist Morten Frisch carried out more robust research in 2009 using marriage data from Denmark . His study found excess mortality was limited to the first few years of marriage, consistent with men who had preexisting illnesses (such as HIV/AIDS) marrying and dying.[1] Frisch stated "we observed a drastic reduction from 9.63 excess deaths per 1000 person-years among those who married their partner in the pre-HAART period to 1.53 excess deaths per 1000 person-years for those who married during the HAART period". According to Frisch, "the claims of drastically increased overall mortality in gay men and lesbians appear unjustified".[5]

Same-sex marriage has been linked with increases in life expectancy compared to unmarried same-sex couples.[14]

In 2013, Frisch also carried out another study which found excess mortality in homosexual men had shrunk further.[14][15][16] It linked same-sex marriage with increases in life expectancy.[14]

2014 retraction

A 2014 study by Hatzenbuelher et al. purported to find that sexual minorities living in areas with high levels of anti-gay prejudice had their life expectancy reduced by 12 years. However, it was retracted in 2019 when it was discovered there was a coding error in the data, and that after correcting the error it "rendered the association between structural stigma and mortality risk no longer statistically significant".[17]

2020 LGB mortality study

A 2020 study in Sweden found that mortality among homosexual men and women did not significantly differ from heterosexuals, although it was elevated for bisexual men and women.[6]

Transgender life expectancy

According to Bosson et al. "the systematic research needed to determine the average life expectancy of transgender people has not yet been conducted".[7]

One unsubstantiated statistic widely circulated in the media claims that the life expectancy of transgender women of color is only 35 years old; however, this is not corroborated by any research.[8] According to sociologist Laurel Westbrook, this inaccurate statistic was calculated by averaging the age of transgender murder victims. This is an erroneous methodology for calculating life expectancy, as murder victims are not a representative population of transgender people.[18]

Several studies have been conducted that indicate that transgender individuals have an increased mortality rate, however these studies are not conclusive.[19][20][21][22][23]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Phillips, Nicky; Zwartz, Barney (2012-09-11). "'Unhealthy' gay lifestyle claims tied to bad study" (in en). https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/unhealthy-gay-lifestyle-claims-tied-to-bad-study-20120911-25qnd.html. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 Corvino, John (2013). What's Wrong with Homosexuality?. Philosophy in action. Oxford University Press. pp. 52–56. ISBN 978-0-19-985631-2. https://archive.org/details/whatswrongwithho0000corv/mode/1up?view=theater. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Hogg, Robert S; Strathdee, Steffanie A; Craib, Kevin JP; O'shaughnessy, Michael V; Montaner, Julio; Schechter, Martin T (2001). "Gay life expectancy revisited" (in en). International Journal of Epidemiology 30 (6): 1499. doi:10.1093/ije/30.6.1499. ISSN 1464-3685. PMID 11821375. "if we were to repeat this analysis today the life expectancy of gay and bisexual men would be greatly improved. Deaths from HIV infection have declined dramatically in this population since 1996". 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Olson, Walter (1997-12-19). "William Bennett, Gays, and the Truth" (in en-US). Slate. ISSN 1091-2339. https://slate.com/news-and-politics/1997/12/william-bennett-gays-and-the-truth.html. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Frisch, Morten; Brønnum-Hansen, Henrik (2009). "Mortality Among Men and Women in Same-Sex Marriage: A National Cohort Study of 8333 Danes" (in en). American Journal of Public Health 99 (1): 133–137. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2008.133801. ISSN 0090-0036. PMID 19008504. "the claims of drastically increased overall mortality in gay men and lesbians appear unjustified". 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Lindström, Martin; Rosvall, Maria (2020-11-01). "Sexual orientation and all-cause mortality: A population-based prospective cohort study in southern Sweden". Public Health in Practice 1: 1–3. doi:10.1016/j.puhip.2020.100032. ISSN 2666-5352. PMID 36101682. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Bosson, Jennifer K.; Buckner, Camille E.; Vandello, Joseph A. (2021-01-09) (in en). The Psychology of Sex and Gender. SAGE Publications. p. not available. ISBN 978-1-5443-9403-9. https://books.google.com/books?id=B74IEAAAQBAJ&dq=life+expectancy+of+transgender+people+has+not+yet+been+conducted&pg=PT452. "the systematic research needed to determine the average life expectancy of transgender people has not yet been conducted" 
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Herzog, Katie (23 September 2019). "Is the Life Expectancy of Trans Women in the U.S. Just 35? No." (in en). https://www.thestranger.com/slog/2019/09/23/41471629/is-the-life-expectancy-of-trans-women-in-the-us-just-35-no. 
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Herek, Gregory M. (1998). "Bad Science in the Service of Stigma: A Critique of the Cameron Group's Survey Studies" (in en). Stigma and Sexual Orientation. SAGE. pp. 223–249. ISBN 978-0-8039-5385-7. https://books.google.com/books?id=L4M5DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA223. 
  10. ↑ Herek, Gregory M.. "Critique of "Obituary Study" by the Paul Cameron Group". https://lgbpsychology.org/html/facts_cameron_obit.html. 
  11. ↑ Knauer, Nancy J. (2016) (in en). Gay and Lesbian Elders: History, Law, and Identity Politics in the United States. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-13089-5. https://books.google.com/books?id=mPEFDAAAQBAJ. 
  12. ↑ Schlatter, Evelyn; Steinback, Robert (2011). "10 Anti-Gay Myths Debunked" (in en). https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/intelligence-report/2011/10-anti-gay-myths-debunked. 
  13. ↑ Gettys, Travis. "Professor: Being gay is like smoking, so charge LGBT people more for life insurance - Raw Story" (in en). https://www.rawstory.com/2014/09/professor-being-gay-is-like-smoking-so-charge-lgbt-people-more-for-life-insurance/. 
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Pappas, Stephanie (2013-03-12). "Same-Sex Marriage Linked to Longer Lives" (in en). https://www.livescience.com/27796-same-sex-marriage-mortality-rates.html. 
  15. ↑ Frisch, Morten; Simonsen, Jacob (2013-03-08). "Marriage, cohabitation and mortality in Denmark: national cohort study of 6.5 million persons followed for up to three decades (1982–2011)". International Journal of Epidemiology 42 (2): 559–578. doi:10.1093/ije/dyt024. ISSN 1464-3685. PMID 23482379. 
  16. ↑ Griebling, Tomas L. (2016). "Sexuality and aging: a focus on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) needs in palliative and end of life care" (in en). Current Opinion in Supportive & Palliative Care 10 (1): 95–101. doi:10.1097/SPC.0000000000000196. ISSN 1751-4258. PMID 26780525. https://journals.lww.com/01263393-201603000-00018. 
  17. ↑ Oransky, Ivan (2019). "Study claiming hate cuts 12 years off gay lives retracted" (in en-US). https://retractionwatch.com/2019/02/26/study-claiming-hate-cuts-12-years-off-gay-lives-retracted/. 
  18. ↑ Westbrook, Laurel (2020) (in en). Unlivable Lives: Violence and Identity in Transgender Activism. University of California Press. pp. 107. ISBN 978-0-520-97415-9. https://books.google.com/books?id=hzoBEAAAQBAJ&dq=transgender+life+expectancy&pg=PA107. 
  19. ↑ Asscheman, Henk; Giltay, Erik J; Megens, Jos A J; de Ronde, W (Pim); van Trotsenburg, Michael A A; Gooren, Louis J G (2011). "A long-term follow-up study of mortality in transsexuals receiving treatment with cross-sex hormones". European Journal of Endocrinology 164 (4): 635–642. doi:10.1530/eje-10-1038. ISSN 0804-4643. PMID 21266549. https://doi.org/10.1530/eje-10-1038. 
  20. ↑ de Blok, Christel JM; Wiepjes, Chantal M; van Velzen, Daan M; Staphorsius, Annemieke S; Nota, Nienke M; Gooren, Louis JG; Kreukels, Baudewijntje PC; den Heijer, Martin (2021). "Mortality trends over five decades in adult transgender people receiving hormone treatment: a report from the Amsterdam cohort of gender dysphoria". The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology 9 (10): 663–670. doi:10.1016/s2213-8587(21)00185-6. ISSN 2213-8587. PMID 34481559. https://doi.org/10.1016/s2213-8587(21)00185-6. 
  21. ↑ Dhejne, Cecilia; Lichtenstein, Paul; Boman, Marcus; Johansson, Anna L. V.; Långström, Niklas; Landén, Mikael (2011-02-22). "Long-Term Follow-Up of Transsexual Persons Undergoing Sex Reassignment Surgery: Cohort Study in Sweden" (in en). PLOS ONE 6 (2): e16885. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0016885. ISSN 1932-6203. PMID 21364939. Bibcode: 2011PLoSO...616885D. 
  22. ↑ Erlangsen, Annette; Jacobsen, Anna Lund; Ranning, Anne; Delamare, Alex Lauridsen; Nordentoft, Merete; Frisch, Morten (2023-06-27). "Transgender Identity and Suicide Attempts and Mortality in Denmark". JAMA 329 (24): 2145–2153. doi:10.1001/jama.2023.8627. ISSN 0098-7484. PMID 37367977. PMC 10300682. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2023.8627. 
  23. ↑ Jackson, Sarah S.; Brown, Jalen; Pfeiffer, Ruth M.; Shrewsbury, Duncan; O’Callaghan, Stewart; Berner, Alison M.; Gadalla, Shahinaz M.; Shiels, Meredith S. (2023-01-30). "Analysis of Mortality Among Transgender and Gender Diverse Adults in England" (in en). JAMA Network Open 6 (1): e2253687. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.53687. ISSN 2574-3805. PMID 36716027. PMC 9887492. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2800814. 



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