Hi there,
As a psychiatrist (& gay) trying to help fellow gays come to terms
with their sexuality & other issues along the Coming Out Continuum,
one of the questions I am always asked by the gay &/or his parents
is - Is there real convincing evidence that one is born gay?
I try to give an unbiased answer that the research of the past decade
& a half is increasingly pointing more & more in favour of a
biological basis of sexuality. I usually quote a few studies briefly
when asked to elaborate.
Sometimes I do come across a gay who wants to have a detailed update
on the biology of homosexuality. I ususally e-mail him the relevant
references.
A brilliant update about the science of homosexuality was published
in June 2007 in the magazine 'Discover - Science, Technology, and The
Future'. I am pasting it below. It is a long article having quite a
few technical words (though mainly written for non-medical
professionals) , so only those who are genuinely interested read it.
My purpose of sharing this update is not to stir up the
eternal 'nature vs nurture' debate of homosexuality, but to just give
you an insight into the painstaking scientific efforts that are being
made to understand homosexuality better. I am aware that this still
might stir up some idiosyncratic responses, but that's okay.
Am sorry for pasting it in one mail itself, but the content is all
internally connected.
Cheers
From a mail I received via a Yahoo! Group
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The Real Story on Gay Genes
Homing in on the science of homosexuality