Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.
TORONTO – Serious mental health disorders and suicidal thoughts are more common among transgender and intersex people in Canada, researchers say.
Their study published recently in the journal JAMA Network Open found that transgender participants were three times more likely to meet criteria for depression, bipolar disorder, generalized anxiety disorder and social phobia than cisgender people.
They were also three times more likely to have had serious thoughts about suicide and six times more likely to have attempted to do so in their lifetime.
The results show a need to better support people as they express their gender identity, said senior author Ian Colman, a professor of epidemiology and public health at the University of Ottawa.
“This highlights the kinds of stressors they’re likely to face as they go through that process,” Colman said in an interview Wednesday.
“The more we can do to support them, the better — whether that’s gender-affirming care through the healthcare system, whether that’s providing safe spaces in schools, in communities … or just being more supportive and tolerant as a society, I think all those things are going to help.”
The population-based study analyzed responses to Statistics Canada’s latest Mental Health and Access to Care survey, which included people aged 15 and older surveyed between March and July 2022.
StatCan’s response rate was 25 per cent, resulting in a sample of 9,861 people. Fifty-two respondents were transgender or gender variant.
“When you see these extremely high rates of poor mental health and suicide in this population, this is a crisis and these people need support,” Colman said.
Differences in mental health may be explained by “minority stress theory,” the authors said in the study, published Oct. 2.
That means “prejudice and negative social experiences by members of historically stigmatized groups can have significant effects on physical and mental health,” they say.
Dr Sarah Fraser, a GP who runs a gender confirmation clinic in Halifax, said the results of the study were “unfortunately not surprising.”
“In my clinical practice, trans and diverse individuals clearly have higher rates of mental health issues such as depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation,” Fraser, who was not involved in the study, said in an email to The Canadian Press.
“My trans patients have told me that they are followed, harassed, yelled at, or even physically attacked just for being who they are. I hear this every day,” he said.
“As a GP, I think one thing we can take away from this study is the importance of providing gender affirming care, and being a supportive place where people can come regardless of their gender identity, ” said Fraser.
Helen Kennedy, executive director of Egale – a Canadian advocacy organization for the LGBTQ + community – said the study reflects the consequences of “the unacceptable amount of hatred, violence and discrimination that transgender and gender diverse communities face across the country. “
“Advocates have long warned of the devastating consequences, including higher rates of suicide. The onus is on all of us to speak out against misinformation and hateful rhetoric so that trans and gender-diverse individuals know they are valued and loved,” Kennedy said in an email.
The researchers identified transgender and gender-variant participants by finding those whose gender identity differed from the gender they were assigned at birth.
Potential limitations of the study include the small number of transgender people in the sample, the authors said, but they noted that the results are in line with other studies on the use of mental health services among transgender people.
–
If you are thinking about suicide, or if you are worried about someone else, call or text Canada’s suicide crisis line at 9-8-8. Support is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
–
This report was first published by The Canadian Press on October 9, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage is supported by a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
Note to readers: This is a corrected story. A previous version misspelled researcher Ian Colman’s last name.
(Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
source link https://canadanewsmedia.ca/fourteen-year-old-girl-pleads-guilty-to-manslaughter-in-halifax-teens-stabbing-death/
