The Department of Health and Human Services has released a much-anticipated report on the “treatment for pediatric gender dysphoria”—that is, a feeling of distress over one’s biological sex. In a review of studies of how to treat the disorder, the report finds that “the overall quality of evidence concerning the effects of any intervention on psychological outcomes, quality of life, regret, or long-term health, is very low.”
The report, published Thursday, was commissioned by President Donald Trump in one of his early actions as president, a January 28 executive order titled “Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation.”
Don’t let the incendiary title of that order mislead you. It has resulted in a sober and scholarly 409-page document, “Treatment for Pediatric Gender Dysphoria: Review of Evidence and Best Practices,” recalling similar surveys done in other Western countries.