Cyberian Muse: WTF Alert: The Anti-Lesbian Drug

I just came accross a Newsweek article on Twitter, posted by Dr. Petra, that made my mouth drop open and remain agape for the entire duration of reading. It exposes a practice that's been going on at the Mt. Sinai medical center in NY that involves giving pregnant mothers sterroids for the purpose of preventing their daughters from being born with ambiguous genetalia, masculine features, inclinationsn to pursue masculine careers, or being lesbians.

Genetic engineers, move over: the latest scheme for creating children to a parentÕs specifications requires no DNA tinkering, but merely giving mom a steroid while sheÕs pregnant, and prestoÑno chance that her daughters will be lesbians or (worse?) Ôuppity.Õ

In February, bioethicist Alice Dreger of Northwestern University and two colleagues blew the whistle on the controversial practice of giving pregnant women dexamethasone to keep the female fetuses they are carrying from developing ambiguous genitalia. (That can happen to girls who have congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH), a genetic disorder in which unusually high prenatal exposure to masculinizing hormones called androgens can cause girls to develop a deep voice, facial hair, and masculine-looking genitalia.) The response Dreger got from physicians and scientists who were outraged over this unapproved use of dexamethasone caused her to dig deeper into the scientific papers of the researcher who has promoted it.

"New has indeed argued that prenatal androgens can affect a womanÕs sexual orientation, her interest in becoming a mother and housewife, her interest in traditionally masculine careers, andÑin childhoodÑwhether she plays with dolls or trucks."