Rights groups, doctors condemn 'anti-gay' hormone treatment

A treatment for a rare birth disorder has been found to have a controversial side-effect: It evidently reduces the likelihood that treated girls will become gay. Rights groups and medical experts are coming out against the treatment, saying it amounts to "engineering in the womb for sexual orientation." The rare condition known as congenital adrenal hyperplasia causes girls to develop ambiguous genitals and facial hair, as well as failure to menstruate. Studies have suggested that "biological and psychological factors" result in individuals with the condition being more likely to be gay. Now a new hormone treatment, reported on by Raw Story in June, has been shown to reduce the condition's effects, while at the same time reducing the likelihood that the treated person will be gay. The Los Angeles Times reports that activist groups and doctors fear what the treatment may mean for sexual orientation rights.