Gay men respond differently to pheromones

[Analog]

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The sexual area of a gay man's brain works a lot like that of a woman when exposed to a particular stimulus, researchers say.

In an experiment, men and heterosexual women sniffed a chemical from the male hormone testosterone. The homosexual men's brains responded differently from those of heterosexual males, and in a similar way to the women's brains.

"It is one more piece of evidence ... that is showing that sexual orientation is not all learned," said Sandra Witelson, an expert on brain anatomy and sexual orientation at the Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine at McMaster University in Ontario, Canada.

Witelson, who was not part of the research team, said the findings clearly show a biological involvement in sexual orientation.

Advertisement


The study, published in Tuesday's issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, was done by researchers at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden.

They exposed heterosexual men and women and homosexual men to chemicals derived from male and female sex hormones. These chemicals are thought to be pheromones - molecules known to trigger responses such as defense and sex in many animals.

Whether humans respond to pheromones has been debated, although in 2000 American researchers reported finding a gene that they believe directs a human pheromone receptor in the nose.

The brains of different groups responded similarly to ordinary odors such as lavender, but differed in their response to the chemicals thought to be pheromones, lead researcher Ivanka Savic said.http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/H/...TE=MIDTN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

 

[JustAnAverageGuy]

It's good that they're conducting this kind of research, but I think P&N would be a better category.

 

[mercanucaribe]

Originally posted by: JustAnAverageGuy
It's good that they're conducting this kind of research, but I think P&N would be a better category.

I bet you would respond differently to that post if you were gay instead of justanaverage guy.

 

[blakeatwork]

I'm honestly surprised a test like this hasn't been conducted before. It seems so simple to administer and monitor.

 

[91TTZ]

It takes lots of research to confirm what people already know. At least now there's scientific proof of it.

 

[ironcrotch]

So its news that gay men are attracted to other men? :roll:

 

[Kipper]

Originally posted by: 91TTZ
It takes lots of research to confirm what people already know. At least now there's scientific proof of it.

The problem with this sort of study is twofold: first, the media will take a VERY thick and technical report and concentrate on one aspect of it or water it down a ridiculous amount. Secondly, we have ZERO idea how the brain works to produce cognitive action, consciousness, choice, and such - we know it works on electrical impulses, neurotransmitters and such, but those are only PART of brain function. Beyond that there is ZERO understanding of anything. We cannot translate those electrical patterns into anything substancial - they are precisely that: random, as far as we can tell. A group of gay men's brains responding (translation: showing electrical activity similar to) like women's brains and not male brains does not prove anything conclusively, really.

Since when do electrical patterns which LOOK LIKE EACH OTHER automatically mean someone is gay? Does a certain part of the brain responding in particular ways to pheromones which is apparently "different" automatically mean that someone will enjoy sex with people of the same sex? Isn't there a LOT more to sex (straight or gay)? This all seems like a logical leap to me, doesn't it to anybody else? I might also add that it's interesting that the alleged "pattern" to brain activity discovered here models the stereotype of gay men as non-men - that is, gay men as emasculated males who behave somewhat like women.

Until we have a better understanding of how the brain produces the behavior we see in day-to-day life I will take studies like this with a grain of salt - or better, I'll ignore them altogether.

 

[Ornery]

AMERICAN PSYCHIATRIC ASSOCIATION BOLSTERS CONDEMNATION OF REPARATIVE THERAPY' TO CHANGE' GAYS

• The American Psychiatric Association was the first mental health organization to remove homosexuality as a mental disorder in 1973. In August 1997, the American Psychological Association overwhelmingly passed a resolution at its convention that asserted that there is no sound scientific evidence on the efficacy of "reparative therapy," which seeks to "cure" homosexuals.

The APA Resolution on Appropriate Therapeutic Responses to Sexual Orientation

• Attempts to use psychological interventions to change sexual orientation are based on the discredited claim that homosexuality is a disease, a notion that represents an attempt to use the language of science to promote antigay prejudice. That view is completely inconsistent with the bulk of scientific research and with the official policies of the American Psychological Association (APA) and the American Psychiatric Association.
  
  
  It is highly doubtful that the so-called "conversion therapies" and "reparative therapies" are actually able to change a person's sexual orientation. Claims about their success are based on scattered anecdotal reports, not on rigorous scientific studies that have been subjected to review by other scientists...

Organizations of US Mental Health Professionals Are Unanimous:

• Perhaps the best rebuttal to claims that gay or lesbian people can "change" their orientation is citation of the many organizations of health care professionals who have officially condemned "conversion" therapies. These include the following:
  
  American Academy of Pediatrics (1993):
  "Therapy directed specifically at changing sexual orientation is contraindicated, since it can provoke guilt and anxiety while having little or no potential for achieving changes in orientation."
  
  American Psychiatric Association (1998):
  "The potential risks of 'reparative therapy' are great, including depression, anxiety and self-destructive behavior. . . . [T]he American Psychiatric Association opposes any psychiatric treatment, such as 'reparative' or 'conversion' therapy, which is based upon the assumption that homosexuality per se is a mental disorder or based upon a prior assumption that the patient should change his/her homosexual orientation." In response to Dr. Spitzer's new research (described below), the APA issued a statement affirming its position and cautioning that "there is no published evidence supporting the efficacy of reparative therapy as a treatment to change one's sexual orientation." The APA removed homosexuality from its list of disorders in 1973.
  
  American Psychological Association (1997):
  "No scientific evidence exists to support the effectiveness of any of the conversion therapies that try to change sexual orientation." The association removed homosexuality from its list of disorders in 1975.
  
  National Association of Social Workers (2000):
  "No data demonstrate that reparative and conversion therapies are effective, and in fact they may be harmful. . . . uch treatment potentially can lead to severe emotional damage." The association removed homosexuality from its list of disorders in 1977.
  
  Cohler & Galatzer-Levy Report (commissioned by the American Psychoanalytic Association) (2000):
  "The mental health community must confront the ethics of directed efforts at changing sexual orientation. Generally these efforts are not successful. . . . uch purportedly therapeutic efforts do not work and may cause harm." The association removed homosexuality from its list of disorders in 1991.

AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS

• In 1973, the American Psychiatric Association reclassified homosexuality as a sexual orientation/expression rather than as a mental disorder. [1] The etiology of homosexuality remains unclear, but the current literature and the vast majority of scholars in this field state that one's sexual orientation is not a choice, that is, individuals no more choose to be homosexual than heterosexual.

American Psychiatric Association

• "...the American Psychiatric Association opposes any psychiatric treatment, such as reparative or conversion therapy which is based upon the assumption that homosexuality per se is a mental disorder or based upon the a priori assumption that the patient should change his/her sexual homosexual orientation."

American Psychiatric Association

• "There are a few reports in the literature of efforts to use psychotherapeutic and counseling techniques to treat persons troubled by their homosexuality who desire to become heterosexual; however, results have not been conclusive, nor have they been replicated. There is no evidence that any treatment can change a homosexual person's deep seated sexual feelings for others of the same sex. "

American Psychological Association

• Is Sexual Orientation a Choice?
  
  No, human beings can not choose to be either gay or straight. Sexual orientation emerges for most people in early adolescence without any prior sexual experience. Although we can choose whether to act on our feelings, psychologists do not consider sexual orientation to be a conscious choice that can be voluntarily changed."

 

[shimsham]

not this shat again....

 

[91TTZ]

Originally posted by: Kipper


Until we have a better understanding of how the brain produces the behavior we see in day-to-day life I will take studies like this with a grain of salt - or better, I'll ignore them altogether.

It sounds like your mind is already made up and you're not willing to believe anything that says otherwise.

It's also a stretch for you to repeatedly claim that we have "Zero" understanding of the way the brain works. We don't know it all, but it certainly isn't zero.

I think liberal beliefs and political correctness (or hardcore conservative beliefs) get in the way of rational thinking. Sometimes the truth isn't what you wanted to believe.

 

[DannyBoy]

Originally posted by: JustAnAverageGuy
It's good that they're conducting this kind of research, but I think P&N would be a better category.

JustAnAverageGay

 

[0roo0roo]

brain chemistry is f*cking complex. whats new

 

[Skyclad1uhm1]

It's more scientific proof that what the relifreaks claim to be a choice is actually a physical different. But what's new eh, everyone with a functional brain already knew relifreaks are f*cking stupid.

 

[91TTZ]

Originally posted by: Skyclad1uhm1
It's more scientific proof that what the relifreaks claim to be a choice is actually a physical different. But what's new eh, everyone with a functional brain already knew relifreaks are f*cking stupid.

Yeah, I always found it strange that the bible-thumpers would think that a person would CHOOSE to be gay, to be discriminated against and to live a life where people hate you. What so hard about admitting that maybe they don't have a choice, they like who they like? When I see a hot woman, I don't need to make any conscious decision about whether she's attractive or not. It's either there or it isn't.