1 July, 2016

WOW!  Homosexuality is VERY unhealthy

Below is the Abstract of a very big study just out in a major medical journal.  In their conclusion they try to put a spin on it but there is no doubt that homosexuals are very unhealthy mentally. They are often in great distress.  Males report report severe psychological distress, heavy drinking and heavy smoking.  Females report moderate psychological distress, poor or fair health, multiple chronic conditions, heavy drinking, and heavy smoking

The odds ratio (2.82) for severe psychological distress among males was particularly strong as such statistics go.  Ratios close to 1.00 are often reported with great excitement in the medical journals.

Leftists will no doubt want to rubbish the findings but this is just about as strong a piece of survey research as you can get.  I criticise survey research a lot -- in part because I have done a lot of it myself  -- but none of my usual criticisms apply here.  

So I imagine that the Left will blame the poor health of homosexuals on the way they are oppressed by the evil cis patriarchy (If you can have a cis patriarchy).  Since homosexuals are in fact privileged these days -- it's even compulsory to make cakes for them -- that would be a hard case to make, but reality never bothers Leftists for long

Comparison of Health and Health Risk Factors Between Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Adults and Heterosexual Adults in the United States

Results From the National Health Interview Survey 

Gilbert Gonzales et al.

ABSTRACT

Importance:  Previous studies identified disparities in health and health risk factors among lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) adults, but prior investigations have been confined to samples not representative of the US adult population or have been limited in size or geographic scope. For the first time in its long history, the 2013 and 2014 National Health Interview Survey included a question on sexual orientation, providing health information on sexual minorities from one of the nation’s leading health surveys. 

Objective:  To compare health and health risk factors between LGB adults and heterosexual adults in the United States.

Design, Setting, and Participants:  Data from the nationally representative 2013 and 2014 National Health Interview Survey were used to compare health outcomes among lesbian (n?=?525), gay (n?=?624), and bisexual (n?=?515) adults who were 18 years or older and their heterosexual peers (n?=?67?150) using logistic regression.

Main Outcomes and Measures:  Self-rated health, functional status, chronic conditions, psychological distress, alcohol consumption, and cigarette use.

Results:  The study cohort comprised 68?814 participants. Their mean (SD) age was 46.8 (11.8) years, and 51.8% (38?063 of 68?814) were female. After controlling for sociodemographic characteristics, gay men were more likely to report severe psychological distress (odds ratio [OR], 2.82; 95% CI, 1.55-5.14), heavy drinking (OR, 1.97; 95% CI, 1.08-3.58), and moderate smoking (OR, 1.98; 95% CI, 1.39-2.81) than heterosexual men; bisexual men were more likely to report severe psychological distress (OR, 4.70; 95% CI, 1.77-12.52), heavy drinking (OR, 3.15; 95% CI, 1.22-8.16), and heavy smoking (OR, 2.10; 95% CI, 1.08-4.10) than heterosexual men; lesbian women were more likely to report moderate psychological distress (OR, 1.34; 95% CI, 1.02-1.76), poor or fair health (OR, 1.91; 95% CI, 1.24-2.95), multiple chronic conditions (OR, 1.58; 95% CI, 1.12-2.22), heavy drinking (OR, 2.63; 95% CI, 1.54-4.50), and heavy smoking (OR, 2.29; 95% CI, 1.36-3.88) than heterosexual women; and bisexual women were more likely to report multiple chronic conditions (OR, 2.07; 95% CI, 1.34-3.20), severe psychological distress (OR, 3.69; 95% CI, 2.19-6.22), heavy drinking (OR, 2.07; 95% CI, 1.20-3.59), and moderate smoking (OR, 1.60; 95% CI, 1.05-2.44) than heterosexual women.

Conclusions and Relevance  This study supports prior research finding substantial health disparities for LGB adults in the United States, potentially due to the stressors that LGB people experience as a result of interpersonal and structural discrimination. In screening for health issues, clinicians should be sensitive to the needs of sexual minority patients.

JAMA Intern Med. Published online June 27, 2016. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2016.3432

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