Anti-trans legislative measures prompted a surge in suicide attempts among transgender adolescents, as reported in a recent study.
New research, published on Thursday in the journal Nature Human Behaviour, reveals that enactment of anti-transgender legislation at the state level is linked to a rise in suicide attempts among transgender and nonbinary youth, with an increase as high as 72% among adolescents residing in states where such laws are implemented.
Statistics suggest that most Americans tend to oppose discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community, including those identifying as transgender, who form part of the larger umbrella term encompassing individuals whose gender identity contrasts with their assigned sex at birth.
However, experts contend that anti-transgender legislation has gained traction in the United States since a 2015 Supreme Court decision that invalidated same-sex marriage bans.
In 2024 alone, political figures across US states introduced 658 anti-transgender bills, three times the previous record, accoring to Trans Legislation Tracker, an independent research organization.
This research analysed data from 2018 to 2022, during which 48 anti-transgender bills were enacted in 19 states. These included policies restricting transgender-specific healthcare, bathroom access, and sports participation, as well as measures prohibiting amendments to identification documents to align with one's true gender. The study surveyed over 61,240 LGBTQ+ individuals between the ages of 13 and 24, with responses from transgender and nonbinary youth accounting for the majority.
The research found no correlation between suicide attempts and the introduction of anti-transgender laws in state legislatures. However, after the enactment of such bills, the study authors observed a statistically significant increase in suicide attempts among transgender and nonbinary young people residing in those affected states.
Considering the target age group of many of these laws, the researchers pointed out that the impact was more pronounced among 13- to 17-year-olds.
“We’ve long acknowledged that links between anti-transgender policies and negative health outcomes for LGBTQ+ youth exist, but this is the first study to prove the causal relationship,” stated Dr. Ronita Nath, co-author and vice president of research at The Trevor Project, a prominent US organization dedicated to offering crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to LGBTQ+ youth.
The researchers suggest that anti-transgender laws may foster a broader societal rejection of their identities, implying that their identities and bodies are neither valid nor deserving of protection.
While the researchers don’t claim that the anti-transgender laws themselves induce suicide attempts, they do suggest that they contribute to stress and anxiety, which are well-known risk factors for suicide. Suicide is one of the leading causes of death among teenagers in the United States.
“Laws restricting access to gender-affirming bathrooms, ending sports participation in alignment with one's gender, may lead to perceptions of rejection, social isolation, bullying,” explained Dr. Nath.
Legislation limiting access to gender-affirming health care has been shown to heighten suicide risk, while research indicates that access to such care leads to improved mental health outcomes, including reduced suicide risk.
Restrictions on updating identification documents to reflect one's true gender can lead to reduced access to essential resources and increased opportunities for discrimination and harassment in public places like airports and polling stations.
“Anti-transgender laws may indeed function as a source of increased minority stress, resulting in increased suicide risk or other mental health issues,” commented Dr. Nath.
“We’re talking about real young people's lives,” she added. “Transgender and nonbinary people are family members, friends, neighbors, and they deserve far more than this.”
Research has repeatedly indicated that transgender and nonbinary individuals have higher rates of suicide attempts. According to research, affirming policies for the LGBTQ+ community significantly lower suicide attempt rates.
Previous research has also unearthed a connection between state-level policies and negative mental health consequences. In August, a smaller study of almost 800 transgender adults in Washington revealed that those concerned about potential rights erosions faced significantly higher risks of depression and anxiety.
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This new research represents a significant milestone in establishing the damaging impact of restrictive anti-transgender legislation.
“This study represents a clear advancement in documenting the harm of such restrictive policies,” said Dr. Alex Keuroghlian, a Harvard Medical School clinical psychiatrist and associate professor, as well as director of the Division of Education and Training at the Fenway Institute, which supports sexual and gender minorities.
Mental health professionals have long anticipated that anti-transgender legislation would inflict significant detrimental consequences, particularly for young people, said Dr. Keuroghlian, who was not involved in the new analysis.
“These laws aim to essentially erase transgender and nonbinary individuals from society. If the state in which you reside passes legislation restricting your fundamental rights and freedoms, including access to medically necessary, evidence-based care, this significantly undermines a young person’s sense of hope for the future. It’s not surprising that such laws lead to an association with risks of suicide attempts.”
Despite the general opposition to discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community in the United States, anti-transgender legislation has become more prevalent, leading to increased suicide attempts among transgender and nonbinary youth. According to a study conducted by The Trevor Project, after the enactment of anti-transgender bills, there was a statistically significant increase in suicide attempts among young people identified as transgender or nonbinary.
