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Non-traditional families

What is “transgendered?”

Transgendered means a person whose identity is not tied to their birth sex. For example, a baby who was born a boy may dress as a woman as an adult. Some transgendered persons have surgery to change their bodies to the opposite sex.

Not all families are made up of a mom, a dad, and the kids. Some families have two dads. Others have two moms. And still others have a parent who is transgendered (say = tranz-JENN-derd).

If you live in a family with two dads or two moms, you’ll have some of the same challenges that your friends with a mom and a dad might have. You’ll also have some issues to deal with that are different from your friends’ family issues. Research shows, though, that children of gay or lesbian parents are no more likely to have poor self-esteem or bad relationships than kids with a mom and a dad. Also, kids who have two dads or two moms are no more likely than kids with a mom and a dad to be gay as they grow up.

 

Content last updated September 22, 2009

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health.

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