Dr. Leonard Saxe and others have written about how environmental estrogens are messing with gender among fish and wildlife in general. We have female fish with male parts and vice-versa, for example. Even population declines are best explained (in some nations) as a result of lower sperm counts, lower testosterone numbers, etc.
Here is one secular article that discusses this: https://nothinghumanisalien.substack.com/p/are-xenoestrogens-causing-a-…
How much of the rapid rise in LGBTQ numbers (esp. among teens and young adults) is nurtured by biological changes from environmental factors, like plastics and pesticides? Now is the time to opine, and, if you are somewhat or well read on this subject, to comment.
Discussion
NewBiblical Responsibility Still Prevails
Even if environmental factors are driving the rapid rise of the LGBTQ community, the Christian must still embrace that there are two genders and stay true to the gender they were born to. It gets less clear in cases where people are born with both sets of organs.
"The Midrash Detective"
NewComplicated situation
One thing that comes to mind is that Brett McKay of the Art of Manliness did an experiment on himself where he doubled his testosterone levels (later 2.5x) by more or less going to a diet that's richer in animal proteins and fat than is typically recommended, a diet that is much more typical of....what the average American male ate back during the 1960s and 1970s. So it would be very interesting, I think, to see what hormone levels were, say, in the 19th century, when animal proteins formed a smaller portion of the diet.
One point of reference, IMO, is that homosexuality, specifically pederasty, flourished among ancient Greek elites back in the day when the elites were the main ones eating animal protein and such. So there is some evidence that testosterone/estrogen balance is not the major thing working here.
Also of note is that I've seen a certain amount of evidence that homosexuality and the like is opportunistic; more or less that when one un-moors one's life from Biblical sexuality, the operative principle for behavior is "do what feels good." That would seem to explain a lot of what we see here.
Aspiring to be a stick in the mud.
NewBert Perry wrote:One point…
Bert Perry wrote:
That is a good point. The rise in numbers to the point where about 20% of Millennials are LGBT, though, I don’t think was matched in the ancient world, but maybe I am wrong. Some of this is certainly fad. But if more and more people are messed up on a biological level, there is less natural impetus involved. With fish and animals being messed up too, I think it is not social change alone.
BTW, the guy in the testosterone article merely demonstrated that some behavioral choices do affect testosterone. But the animal kingdom stuff suggests that is not the biggest contributors. Don’t know if you read the article I indexed, but a skim read might be interesting.
"The Midrash Detective"
NewYup
Ed, I did read it, and the main thought I had is that while it's a fascinating set of data, there are a LOT of other factors involved besides environmental xenoestrogens. Hence my comment.
But on the light side, my wife and I lived in Boulder when we were newlyweds, so we may have had a part in some of those mutant frogs of Boulder Creek....which would make a great name for a horror movie.
Aspiring to be a stick in the mud.
NewAnother point of reference
This post here. More or less, Gallup is finding huge shifts in self-reporting of being LGBTQ+, but there is no accompanying shift in genetics or environmental factors. That leaves, more or less, cultural factors as a cause.
Aspiring to be a stick in the mud.
NewNot Necessarily
Bert Perry said:
Not necessarily. The environmental factors could build up in the background, providing a pre-conditioning for the cultural factors. It might take the two together.
"The Midrash Detective"
Newcould be, but...
...the environmental factors are things like birth control (out since the 1960s) and plasticizers (out since the 1980s and before). So I therefore doubt that the concentrations have increased much, especially since hormonal birth control dosages have gone down a lot since they were introduced in the 1960s.
Aspiring to be a stick in the mud.