Hormone Therapy, Health Outcomes and the Role of Nutrition in Transgender Individuals: A Scoping Review

Abstract

Abstract Objectives To describe the extent, range and nature of literature examining the nutrition-related intermediate and long-term health outcomes in individuals who are transgender. Specific sub-topics include dietary intake, nutrition-related health disparities, validity and reliability of nutrition assessment methods, and the effects of nutrition interventions/exposures and hormone therapy. Methods A literature search was conducted of Medline, Embase, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Web of Science, and other databases from 1999 though 2019 to identify peer-reviewed articles published in English that addressed the research objective. Conference abstracts and registered trials were eligible if they were published in 2015 or later. Each title/abstract and eligible full-text article was screened by two reviewers and discrepancies were determined by consensus. Data was extracted by one reviewer and confirmed by a second reviewer. Results The literature search identified 3020 original studies, abstracts or registered trials, 424 full-text articles were reviewed for inclusion and 188 were included in qualitative analysis, including 17 systematic reviews. Populations examined included adults (n = 159), adolescents (n = 61) and children (n = 11). The vast majority of included articles examined the effects of hormone therapy on intermediate outcomes (n = 118) such as anthropometric, bone density and laboratory measures, or health outcomes (n = 18) such as cardiovascular disease events or quality of life. There was also considerable research examining the prevalence of health outcomes, such as eating disorders, malnutrition status, or diabetes, in transgender compared to cisgender populations. However, there was a paucity of data describing dietary intake (n = 10), validity and reliability of nutrition assessment methods (n = 1) or the effects of nutrition interventions on nutrition-related outcomes (n = 3) in transgender individuals. Nearly all evidence, except for three hormone trials, was observational in nature. Conclusions There is a need for research that examines medical nutrition therapy to promote health and prevent or treat adverse health outcomes that are prevalent in individuals who are transgender. Funding Sources Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.