You get the gay from your mother

October 13, 2004 5:52 PM

You get the gay from your mother.
It turns out that there may not be "gay" genes, just "attracted to men" genes.
posted by NortonDC (30 comments total)

But of course everybody still loves boobies.
posted by NortonDC at 5:53 PM on October 13, 2004

Don't be silly. You get the gay from Judy Garland records.
posted by jonmc at 6:07 PM on October 13, 2004

- "You know, my mother made me a homosexual."

- "That's great - if I get her the wool, will she make me one...?"
posted by dash_slot- at 6:20 PM on October 13, 2004

actually according to the article, 14% of the 10% of you who like the butt spelunking get the genes from mom.

i meant no malice with that. i'm just having fun with words.
posted by glenwood at 6:44 PM on October 13, 2004

butt spelunking?

I always thought "dork snorkeler" had a wonderful onomotopeoic flavor myself, as homophobic insults went.
posted by jonmc at 6:50 PM on October 13, 2004

You can get the gay from your married severely closeted homosexual father, too, you know.

After all, it was my dad that gave me muscle man magazines and Sports Illustrateds and encouraged me to work out at the gym and all.

Mom just wanted me to be nice.
posted by WolfDaddy at 6:53 PM on October 13, 2004 [1 favorite]

it's interesting, but doesn't account for the majority of gay people, nor our continuing to be here, queer, and everywhere, always. I love that about us!
posted by amberglow at 7:06 PM on October 13, 2004

amber - if it's correct, it does account for the majority of gay people since, supposedly without it, it'd've died out.

I'm also of the opinion that it's something like a lot of other things: genes predispose, environment triggers. I have no clinical research basis for that supposition, however. It just seems reasonable.
posted by kavasa at 7:21 PM on October 13, 2004

Even if the maternal factors identified by Camperio-Ciani’s team are linked with male homosexuality, the research team’s calculations suggest they account for only about 14% of the incidence.

But Camperio-Ciani calculates the contribution of this effect to male homosexuality at 7% at most. So together, he says, the “maternal” and “immune” effects only account for 21% of male homosexuality, leaving 79% of the causation still a mystery.

Am i reading that part wrong?
posted by amberglow at 7:45 PM on October 13, 2004

My mom got teh gay in her forties. I guess my heterosexuality will be in trouble in 20 years.
posted by neckro23 at 8:04 PM on October 13, 2004

OK--let's test this out: i'm one of 3 kids.

you guys and gals?
posted by amberglow at 8:07 PM on October 13, 2004

1 of 9.
posted by dash_slot- at 8:15 PM on October 13, 2004

1 of 4 Second child for mother (first was a girl too). But I'm certain that what I know of other related reseach points to different genetic/womb environment causative factors for gay boys vs. gay girls.
posted by ltracey at 8:21 PM on October 13, 2004

So where do the lesbians come from, then?

(and nobody say "Smith" please)

Also, what about us bisexuals? Where do we come from?
posted by Sidhedevil at 8:48 PM on October 13, 2004

Sarah Lawrence? Simmons? Barnard? ; >
posted by amberglow at 8:54 PM on October 13, 2004

butt spelunking?

I always thought "dork snorkeler" had a wonderful onomotopeoic flavor myself, as homophobic insults went.

I can't believe either of those got left out of the song...
posted by arto at 9:11 PM on October 13, 2004

I'm one of three kids. Mother's side of the family is pretty large -- my mom was one of six kids; there's a four-kid family from one of my aunts as well. I will admit I was reading that article thinking "Hmm, honestly that sounds about right." But then I do that with my horoscope occasionally too.
posted by logovisual at 9:35 PM on October 13, 2004

Don't be silly. You get the gay from Judy Garland records.

Don't be silly. You get the gay from reading MetaFilter!
posted by PWA_BadBoy at 10:01 PM on October 13, 2004

Don't be silly. You get the gay from reading MetaFilter!

Don't be silly. When you read MetaFilter, the GAY gets YOU!
posted by jmccorm at 10:04 PM on October 13, 2004

you guys and gals?

1 out of 6 adopted kids. All went to different homes. Out of the six, my oldest sister is a lesbian, two brothers identify as bisexual, and I'm gay.

4 out of 6.

There is some question, though, as to whether or not we all had the same biological father.
posted by WolfDaddy at 10:32 PM on October 13, 2004

WolfDaddy you should submit your case to science.

Me, I'm 1 of humanity (hippy gene).
posted by stbalbach at 10:52 PM on October 13, 2004

1 of 9.

Might also want to consider religion if going this way... Interesting article, I thought.
posted by nthdegx at 2:24 AM on October 14, 2004

posted by The God Complex at 4:09 AM on October 14, 2004

Second of two. (What am I, a borg?) And gay as John Ashcroft's closet.
posted by benjh at 5:02 AM on October 14, 2004

I have the "attracted to men" genes. Of course I am female. : )

There are two of us, I'm older. My sister is gay, I am straight.
posted by SisterHavana at 10:46 AM on October 14, 2004

amber - I think that bit was talking about "causation in any one individual" while the research explains why the trait hasn't died out of humanity as a whole.
posted by kavasa at 1:03 PM on October 14, 2004

“We think of it as genes for ‘male homosexuality’, but it might really be genes for sexual attraction to men. These could predispose men towards homosexuality and women towards ‘hyper-heterosexuality’, causing women to have more sex with men and thus have more offspring.”

So it's really more of a slut gene, then, is what they're saying?
posted by occhiblu at 2:16 PM on October 14, 2004

>butt spelunking?

>>I always thought "dork snorkeler" had a wonderful onomotopeoic flavor myself, as homophobic insults went.

Homophobic insults or clear-eyed comedy? Fork or spoon? If I was teh ghay, I'd use both of those with abandon to describe myself, 'cause I think think they're just plain funny. Ah well.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 7:42 PM on October 14, 2004

Uhmm... the whole research methodology is off... Isn't it just much more likely that a mother that has more children, will give birth to a child who turns out to be gay... If the average probability of any given child turning out to be gay is say, a very small percent like 7 or 5, then isn't it just more likely that women with more children are statistically more like to have a guy child?
posted by gregb1007 at 8:15 PM on October 14, 2004

I'm one of five kids and the only girl. There are 10 cousins in my generation on my mom's side (yes, my sibs make up half of them). I'm bisexual and have one male cousin that the consensus says is gay, everyone else is hetero.
posted by deborah at 12:07 PM on October 15, 2004