American Heart Association: Transgenders Face Differing Health Challenges

The American Heart Association, supported by volunteers, fund research, advocate for publics health and share resources. The Dallas-based organization has been a source of health information for nearly a century. They have asked Frank Report to publish this article to draw attention to health care disparities for Transgender Day of Remembrance.

With Transgender Day of Remembrance on November 20, 2021, the American Heart Association, is drawing attention to unique factors affecting transgender health and calling for swift policy action to address health care disparities and equitable access to care for transgender people.

In a new scientific statement released in July 2021, the Association found that there are higher levels of heart disease among transgender and gender diverse people which are linked to the stress of experiencing discrimination and transphobia at personal and societal levels. Poorer health outcomes are also linked to lack of equitable access to care and higher levels of smoking and overweight or obesity.

“Heart disease and stroke do not discriminate,” said Carl Streed Jr., M.D., M.P.H., chair of the writing group for the statement, an assistant professor of internal medicine at Boston University School of Medicine and the research lead at the Center for Transgender Medicine and Surgery at Boston Medical Center. “This is why we are highlighting the critical science and calling for further action in addressing disparities in health equity for transgender and gender diverse people. There is a need for additional training for clinicians and health care professionals to ensure gender diverse and transgender people feel safe and welcome in the health care setting. Training is also needed to make sure there is appropriate screening and management of cardiovascular issues and risk factors, particularly those associated with discrimination and stress, that are more prevalent in LGBTQ+ communities, such as smoking and excess alcohol consumption.”

The American Heart Association, the world’s leading nonprofit organization focused on heart and brain health for all, is tracking how heart disease uniquely affects the LBGTQ+ population and this most recent science builds upon the Association’s 2020 scientific statement, Assessing and Addressing Cardiovascular Health in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (or Questioning) Adults. That statement notes that more than half (56%) of LGBTQ adults and 70% of those who are transgender, or gender non-conforming reported experiencing some form of discrimination from a health care professional.

According to the American Heart Association’s scientific statements, LGBTQ+ individuals, and particularly people who are transgender and gender diverse, may be at a significantly greater risk for adverse cardiovascular outcomes when compared to cisgender individuals.

Transgender and gender diverse populations also face unique psychological stressors, including gender non-affirmation (e.g., being called by the incorrect pronoun), discrimination, rejection or concealment of gender identity and violence based on gender identity. These factors contribute to higher overall levels of stress, which, in turn, negatively affect heart health. Additionally, transgender and gender diverse people who are also part of historically excluded racial or ethnic groups experience multiple layers of stress, such as lower income levels or limited access to health care. Research on how these complex and intertwined factors affect heart health within this community is limited.

Facts on transgender people and cardiovascular health:

  • Transgender men are twice as likely to have a heart attack than cisgender men and four times as likely than cisgender women.
  • Transgender people and individuals who are gender diverse are also more likely to experience blood clots when undergoing estrogen hormone therapy. The writing group points out more investigation is urgently needed to explain these disparities.
  • People undergoing gender-affirming hormone therapy are more physically active, which may be because they report being more satisfied with their bodies.
  • Transgender and gender diverse youth report eating more fast food and using unsafe ways of trying to manage their weight (e.g., diet pills, fasting or laxative abuse).
  •  People in this community report overall higher body mass index (BMI), yet they may experience additional stress about their weight since many surgeons have strict BMI cut-offs above which they will not perform gender-affirming surgeries.

What can be done to improve health for LGBTQ+ people?

  • Add LGBTQ+-related content to health care professional training and licensure requirements.
    • The Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant began requiring LGBT curricular content in September 2020.
  • Include sexual orientation and gender identity information in electronic health records to provide:
    • an opportunity to address specific health concerns for LGBT patients, and
    • information that allows broader examination in research and public health efforts of the cardiovascular health of LGBT adults.

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  • I’m a trans woman, born in 1957, transitioned 1991-1994. In 1982 I had a heart-ache for the first time, with an abnormal EKG and a thorough check – no organic findings, but heavily psychosomatic. I broke university studies and recovered. In 1989 the same heart-ache again – the undoubtedly sign that I had to change my life basically, so I prepared transitioning. For me it is highly plausible that trans persons experience more heart ailments. After transitioning the heart-aches didn’t come back anymore. In 2019 my long-term life partner died and my heart sank, but the EKG proved to be ok. Make up your mind, but don’t put heart-aches caused by transitioning.

  • Is this how you decided to celebrate “Trans Remembrance Day”?

    Violence against trans people is horrific.

    And stop censoring comments that point out how Frank is no longer an investigative journalist.

    Frank is back to being a Nxivm PR person.

    Frank just spent time with Nicki Clyne. Frank KNOWS what Nicki and Keith did wrong to get Keith put into the SHU. Frank has always known. But he feigns ignorance.

    Instead, Frank posts this nonsense.

    Frank is now a cult apologist. Paid or unpaid damage control for Keith Raniere.

    • Miss Coincidence,

      Trans Remembrance Day was the 20th…
      I had no idea it was Trans Day, and I doubt Frank or any other red blooded man was aware.

      BTW: Coincidences happen all the time. I once went to a Mazzy Gray concert in Cambridge, Massachusetts and I ran into Michelle Salzman. I might add, she’s a lot better looking in person.
      ***
      Regarding Frank’s pay…

      …..When you say “unpaid” are you making the insinuation that Frank is taking another form of recompense other than cash? In other words, Frank is receiving something in lieu of cash. I wonder what dastardly form of remuneration Frank is receiving.
      Frank’s definitely not taking wampum. Parlato is not so naive. Wampum is no longer legal tender on Indian reservations. He’s not Irish so he can’t be plied with whiskey. Unlike, Alonzo, Frank can’t be bought for a box of RingDings and a quart of milk. It’s all a mystery to me how Nicki is paying Frank off.

  • This article brings to light an important topic.

    The problems trans men and women are experiencing are most likely linked to hormonal issues which are more acute than regular people. Balancing levels of testosterone and estrogen is an incredible difficult endeavor.

    Here’s two scientific and medicine based articles science:

    https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news/newsroom/news-releases/sex-hormone-levels-alter-heart-disease-risk-in-older-women

    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6844610/

  • This is perhaps a lie:

    “which are linked to the stress of experiencing discrimination and transphobia at personal and societal levels.”

    This is a DISABILITY. All too often, gender dysphoria is linked to depression, which has many organic causes. They are not all imposed by society. If you don’t know if you’re a man or a woman, you have a lot of other problems, and had those problems long before you decided to cut your penis off. This is why you have been deemed DISABLED.

    The depression may be the result of a chemical imbalance they were born with.

    This needs to be addressed.

    • Anonymous 5:29

      Sorry, there is some science…

      Take look at finger lengths…..

      https://www.bbc.com/news/health-45887691

      https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11910785/

      ****
      No human being is born perfect…..

      We are imperfect creatures that God or evolution created. People are not perfect.

      No one decides to be gay. Gay men and women didn’t make a choice. Over 75% of the world’s people, governments, and cultures are biased against gay women and men. No one chooses to be hated. Contrary to what some gay people say, everyone wishes to belong. We are social animals.

      China:
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_China
      Indai

      I’m cannot pretend to be some big-time defender of gay people, but, at the same time I don’t have a problem with them like you do.

      Frank – I believe you publishing these articles is a very GOOD thing. People should be able to freely engage in dialogue. Free speech and the right to assembly, even if it’s on the web, are important exercises.

      • Nice Guy:

        I understand mysteries abound.

        We are not talking Gay.. We are talking Transgender. Different.

        I agree Mother Nature isn’t perfect. Could be hormonal, genetic, issues in the womb, who knows.

        But what the left is doing is indoctrinating kids in school and screwing them up in the head.

        Until we learn the root causes of human genderism, it remains a ” medical condition ” that clearly has a psychological component.

    • It’s a psychological disorder. There are no physical markers that makes one “Trans”. There are a vast number of physical ailments that are caused by giving wrong sexed hormones. There are no long term studies that show the impact, this is an experiment and those who embark on medical veneer instead of the appropriate therapy will have a lifetime of side effects to deal with.

      The current classification was changed by lobbying groups that represent the medical industries who profit, so that elective treatments could be billable to insurance.

      Sweden and Finland have already started dismantling their policies to address “trans identities” in light of new research, which cites the studies used as basis for a global industry as junk, invalid.

      Intersex birth anomalies play no role in “trans identities”.

      https://grahamlinehan.substack.com/p/new-swedish-documentary-exposes-the

      “This is in Swedish only for now. A trans child, Leo was treated for puberty blockers for 4 years. Leo ended up with osteoporosis (significantly below any normal bone density interval), fractures in the back, constant pain and worse mental state.

      The journalist also found an additional 12 cases in Stockholm only where children had serious side effects (bone fractures, deep regret from voice changes, injuries, deteriorating mental health and significant weight gains). Leo’s case was not reported and not one of these.

      Leo’s parents were not informed of the risk and the doctor that warned the parents about the side effects was reported to the management and silenced (words like incitement was used).

      The psychiatric staff initially blamed everything on the hormone team. The head of the department with the hormones claimed in the interview to never have seen the reports from the psychiatric team.

      Investigation only seems to have started after the journalist made the program and it wasn’t possible to cover up any more.

      And this was Astrid Lindgren’s children’s hospital, one of the hospitals that at least stopped with this treatment. Other hospitals are happily still going and claim that the treatment side effects don’t worry them.

      The program finishes with the fact that nobody knows the number of children with serious side effects (some seem to be covered up). Some other Swedish hospitals keep going.

      And there is an interview with two transwomen who think that it is horrid that people are using “think of the children”, that it is just an argument to deprive trans people of care. They think that the big problem is transphobia. These two transwomen also spoke at the medical conference and told the doctors about how they needed to shift the focus from potential harm to children to fighting transphobia.

      I feel sick. I hope this will come out with subtitles soon.”

About the Author

Frank Parlato is an investigative journalist.

His work has been cited in hundreds of news outlets, like The New York Times, The Daily Mail, VICE News, CBS News, Fox News, New York Post, New York Daily News, Oxygen, Rolling Stone, People Magazine, The Sun, The Times of London, CBS Inside Edition, among many others in all five continents.

His work to expose and take down NXIVM is featured in books like “Captive” by Catherine Oxenberg, “Scarred” by Sarah Edmonson, “The Program” by Toni Natalie, and “NXIVM. La Secta Que Sedujo al Poder en México” by Juan Alberto Vasquez.

Parlato has been prominently featured on HBO’s docuseries “The Vow” and was the lead investigator and coordinating producer for Investigation Discovery’s “The Lost Women of NXIVM.” In addition, he was credited in the Starz docuseries 'Seduced' for saving 'slave' women from being branded and escaping the sex-slave cult known as DOS.

Parlato appeared on the Nancy Grace Show, Beyond the Headlines with Gretchen Carlson, Dr. Oz, American Greed, Dateline NBC, and NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, where Parlato conducted the first-ever interview with Keith Raniere after his arrest. This was ironic, as many credit Parlato as one of the primary architects of his arrest and the cratering of the cult he founded.

Parlato is a consulting producer and appears in TNT's The Heiress and the Sex Cult, which premieres on May 22, 2022.

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