Twice as many children and teenagers are being diagnosed with gender dysphoria today than before the pandemic, a report suggests.
Analysts at LexisNexis — which tracks 300million patients — found the number of insurance claims for gender identity care among under-18s spiked 133 percent from 2019 to 2023.
It is part of a wider sharp increase in mental health issues among children.
Claims for care relating to eating disorders surged 108 percent in the same time, while anxiety-related claims rose 61 percent.
Overall, the report found that claims for any kind of mental health care surged 83 percent among under-18s over the period studied.
The above shows insurance claims for mental health care, according to LexisNexis. They analyzed data from more than 300million patients
There are surges in the number of youth reporting gender dysphoria, or when their gender does not match their biological sex
Many experts have put the rise in gender dysphoria cases down to wider acceptance of gender dysphoria and more willingness to seek treatment.
But there are also concerns that the impressionable minds of children are being easily swayed by social trends.
Much of the rise was also recorded during the Covid pandemic, with commentators suggesting that isolation due to lockdowns and increased online social interaction could have led to introspection or doubt among children about their gender identity.
The report was compiled by LexisNexis Risk Solutions, a New York City-based data company which tracks billions of claims made in the US every year.
Its claims for gender identity care may have included counseling sessions and appointments to get prescriptions for gender-affirming treatments.
Data was not published on the number of claims filed for gender identity among under-18s by year.
But the report matches similar studies which have also pointed to a surge in transgender care.
The above shows insurance claims for diagnoses with gender dysphoria – or a different gender to that assigned at birth – by year. These have also doubled since 2017
Across all age groups, surgery rates rose most dramatically in 2021
One study published in 2022 found the number of ‘top’ surgeries — where the breasts are removed — performed on under-18s had risen 13-fold since 2013, while a second from a data analytics firm said some states had seen an up to 274 percent surge in gender dysphoria rates from 2018 to 2022.
About 300,000 children aged between 13 and 17 have gender dysphoria, estimates suggest — or say that their biological sex does not match their gender identity.
This number is more than double the figure for 2017, when the same research group at the University of California, Los Angeles, said 149,000 children were transgender.
The states are also recording surges in gender dysphoria among children, with a report finding each saw a rise from 2018 to 2022 except South Dakota.
The biggest jumps were in Virginia and Indiana, where the number of youngsters saying their gender did not match the one they were assigned at birth rose more than 200 percent.
Gender dysphoria is diagnosed via an interview with a mental health professional, who may then prescribe treatments.
These can include counseling, as well as taking therapies like puberty blockers and feminizing or masculinizing hormones.
Gender-affirming surgeries may also be offered to make someone’s body better match their gender identity.
Dr Abbey Jo Schrage, a psychotherapist based in Idaho who treats transgender children, told FOX News that the rise was likely driven by greater awareness.
‘The first is the simply fact of awareness of gender identity issues,’ she told the publication.
‘Youth have newfound, and constant, access to information and language regarding issues such as gender identity via countless apps and websites.’
She added: ‘Another factor is the increasing cultural and social acceptance of expressions regarding gender identity.’
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