• Question: Is people being gay to do with their hormones? Or is it to do with the brain?

    Asked by JammyHippoInCustard to Amy, Craig, Laura, Partha, Saffron on 20 Jun 2015.
    • Photo: Amy Cameron

      Amy Cameron answered on 20 Jun 2015:

      Many factors determine sexual orientation which are not fully understood. There have been scientific studies which suggest a genetic cause, however, this is not conclusive. What people see as desirable is still something we have a lot to learn about. When we see someone that we desire this can lead to a number of responses including sexual arousal. It is more to do with the brain which we don’t understand very well than anything to do with hormones. Hormone release would be a consequence not a cause.

    • Photo: Laura Wales

      Laura Wales answered on 23 Jun 2015:

      It’s said that exposure to certain hormones plays a role in determining if a foetus is going to develop into a boy or a girl, and it may influence sexual orientation later on in life. Pre-natal hormones therefore, might be seen as a primary determinant or it could be a co-factor with biological, environmental or social factors.

      Recent research has suggested that being gay could be a congenital condition much like being “left handed”.

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