The future is trans.

 

The future is trans?  

Testosterone, oestrogen, and progesterone are  sex hormones naturally produced by our gonads, (otherwise known as testes and ovaries). Together with epigenetic signals (eg cultural signals)  these hormones determine our phenotype,, typically in binary form, ie as male or female. Puberty, when gonads are particularly active, is a significant and to an extent irreversible developmental step influenced by these hormones.Today, in western societies ‘non-binary’ is a phrase increasingly used to describe gender identity and the issue of artificially ‘transitioning’ from one gender to another using synthetic hormones is a  hotly discussed topic.  My impression is that gender is not what it was. The question is, is the change  real or imagined?

I think the change is real.

6o+ years of ingesting  sex hormones have altered societies across the globe in a way never seen before. 

Ingesting sex hormones? Yes, we, or rather the pharmaceutical industry, have been synthesising sex hormones on a grand scale for a very long time.. 

Sex hormones are part of the generic class of chemicals derived from cholesterol-like molecules called steroids and these have many profound effects on the body:  doping with male steroids, androgens like testosterone, has been part of elite  and now ‘gym’ male sports culture for 70 years and (banned and tested for with greater or lesser success)  whereas female sex hormones are used for contraception  and even more extremely to transition from a male phenotype to female. has been effected by administration of oestrogens. 

Changes in bodily appearance brought about by sex hormones are obvious but what is less obvious is that there is a psychological change.Changing levels of sex hormones always produce psychological changes. The paragraph above is mostly about extremes, what about every day sex hormone ingestion?

In the middle, so to speak and much more importantly are ‘us’..(well not me I am a biochemist).

If you are female you may have been ingesting the hormonal oral contraceptive, maybe for years.

If you eat poultry and cattle meat, oh and dairy, you  will have ingested some of the female sex hormones used in promoting their growth. If you ingest soya ( in bread and most bakery products as well in ‘milks’ protein shakes and others) you will ingest phyto-oestrogens. If you are a gym bunny and maybe you want to lose some fat and gain some lean then testosterone is for you.

The point is, ingesting (eating) sex hormones will change you, physically and psychologically, and that’s what we do now. Sometimes it is elective: contraception, gender phenotype, sport performance but often it is in  a form now near ubiquitous in foodstuffs. And whilst on the subject of foodstuffs, morbid obesity increases the production of oestrogen in males as well as females. The important wor din this paragraph is ‘psychologically’. Changes in mind appear long before phenotype changes are noticeable.

If you accept the premises above then what should we see in the population around us. Well, everything from ultra-agressive males (roiders) to an increase in gender disphoria, decrease in binary gender identity, intersex ‘podgy’male phenotypes, reduced fertlity and reluctance to reproduce. In other words the folk of any city high street in the UK.

So may be the future really is trans