News for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Physicians
Smoking a "deadly threat" for GLBT community: report
Decisive action is needed to better understand why the smoking rate among gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) patients is roughly double that of the general population and to find effective solutions to this health issue, according to a report issued by the American Lung Association.
The report, "Smoking Out a Deadly Threat: Tobacco Use in the LGBT Community," presents a compilation of research that examines possible contributing factors to the GLBT smoking rate, including stress and discrimination related to homophobia, the tobacco industry's targeted marketing to LGBT consumers and lack of access to culturally appropriate tobacco treatment programs.
The AMA offers various tobacco cessation resources, ranging from videos to webinars to the Healthier Life Steps® program.
Parental support connected to health after coming out, study shows
Lesbian, gay and bisexual adults who received positive support from their parents after coming out to them reported a lower incidence of mental health and substance abuse problems than those who did not receive support, a study shows.
In the study, researchers from the Boston University School of Public Health found, for example, that gay and bisexual males whose parents did not support them had six to seven times the odds of serious depression and binge drinking. Meantime, lesbian and bisexual females had five times the odds of developing serious depression, and 11 times the odds of illicit drug use.
Researchers propose that a strategy to improve health among lesbian, gay and bisexual youths would be for national academies of pediatric medicine to develop and disseminate guidelines or recommendations to members. These guidelines would encourage pediatricians to provide all parents of adolescents with tips for supporting children if they come out as lesbian, gay or bisexual.
The study appears in the Journal of Homosexuality. View a news release about it.
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