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The World Health Organization's Position on "Conversion Therapy": A Summary for Faith-Based Parents
For more than three decades, the World Health Organization has said there is no medical basis for trying to change a child’s attractions or how they see themselves.
Quick Takeaways
In 1990, WHO removed homosexuality from its list of mental disorders, a decision now marked each May 17 around the world.
In 2012, WHO’s regional office for the Americas declared that there is no medical basis for trying to change someone’s attractions.
In 2015, WHO joined eleven other UN agencies in condemning “unethical and harmful” so-called therapies to change a person’s attractions.
In 2019, WHO moved the diagnosis once used for minors who say they see themselves differently out of its mental disorders chapter.
None of this settles questions of faith. It does mean no leading global health authority has ever found a medical basis for conversion therapy.
Direct Answer: The World Health Organization has never endorsed “conversion therapy.” In 1990, WHO removed homosexuality from its list of mental disorders. In 2012, its regional office for the Americas declared that there is “no medical indication for changing sexual orientation” and called these practices a serious threat to health and even life. In 2015, WHO joined eleven other United Nations agencies in condemning “unethical and harmful” so-called therapies aimed at changing a person’s attractions. In 2019, WHO moved the diagnosis once used for minors who say they see themselves differently out of its mental illness chapter entirely. None of this requires Christian parents to abandon scripture. It means the world’s leading health body has repeatedly found that changing a child is not a medical option worth paying for.
Where WHO’s Position Began: 1990
On May 17, 1990, WHO’s governing body voted to remove homosexuality from the mental disorders chapter of its diagnostic manual, the International Classification of Diseases. That date is now observed worldwide each year, a mark of how significant WHO considered the change. The decision reflected a simple conclusion: same-sex attraction alone was never evidence of illness needing a cure. WHO has never reversed that finding, and every statement it has issued since builds on it, including the reasoning behind what conversion therapy actually involves.
“No Medical Indication”: WHO’s 2012 Statement
In May 2012, on the 22nd anniversary of that decision, WHO’s regional office for the Americas issued a position statement titled “‘Cures’ for an Illness That Does Not Exist.” Its director at the time, Dr. Mirta Roses Periago, put it directly: “Since homosexuality is not a disorder or a disease, it does not require a cure. There is no medical indication for changing sexual orientation.” The statement called these so-called therapies a serious threat to health, well-being, and even life, and said they violate the ethical principles of health care.
Joining the United Nations in 2015
WHO did not stand alone for long. On September 29, 2015, it joined eleven other UN agencies, including UNICEF, in an unprecedented joint statement calling for an end to violence and discrimination against people based on their attractions or how they see themselves. The statement specifically condemned “unethical and harmful so-called ‘therapies’” practiced in medical settings, describing them as a form of abuse.
The 2019 Reclassification
In May 2019, WHO approved a new edition of its diagnostic manual, effective 2022, that moved the diagnosis once used for minors who say they are transgender, formerly filed as “gender identity disorder” under mental disorders, into a chapter on sexual health and renamed it “gender incongruence.” WHO called it a step toward recognizing that seeing oneself differently is not, on its own, evidence of mental illness.
What This Means for Christian Families
None of these decisions came from a court, and none settled a question of scripture. They are medical findings, not verdicts on faith. What they confirm is what CT4F has said consistently: no reputable medical body anywhere has found a scientific basis for changing a child’s attractions or how they see themselves. Selling a cure that the world’s own health authority says does not exist is a scam dressed up in a white coat. Even as courts here debate cases like Chiles v. Salazar, the global medical consensus has not moved in decades. You can trust that consensus and still raise your child within your faith. Loving your child and living out your convictions were never in conflict.
Frequently Asked Questions
Has WHO ever endorsed conversion therapy? No. Its record runs in the opposite direction, from removing homosexuality from its disorders list in 1990 to reclassifying related diagnoses out of its mental illness chapter in 2019.
What did WHO’s 2012 statement say? That there is no medical indication for changing someone’s attractions, that the practice is a serious threat to health and even life, and that it violates the ethical principles of health care.
Did WHO address minors who say they are transgender? Yes. In 2019, its manual moved “gender identity disorder” out of the mental disorders chapter and renamed it “gender incongruence.”
Does this mean Christian parents must change their beliefs? No. WHO’s findings are medical, not theological. Parents can accept that no credible health authority supports conversion therapy while still holding to their faith.
Where can I learn more about what conversion therapy is? CT4F’s conversion therapy explained guide covers the practice and the research behind why major health bodies, including WHO, have rejected it.
Sources and Further Reading
WHO’s Official Record on Conversion Therapy
PAHO/WHO: “Cures” for an Illness that Does Not Exist (2012 position statement)
UN News: WHO’s 2019 diagnostic manual update on “gender identity disorder”
CT4F Resources for Families
Publicaciones recientes
The World Health Organization's Position on "Conversion Therapy": A Summary for Faith-Based Parents
For more than three decades, the World Health Organization has said there is no medical basis for trying to change a child’s attractions or how they see themselves.
Quick Takeaways
In 1990, WHO removed homosexuality from its list of mental disorders, a decision now marked each May 17 around the world.
In 2012, WHO’s regional office for the Americas declared that there is no medical basis for trying to change someone’s attractions.
In 2015, WHO joined eleven other UN agencies in condemning “unethical and harmful” so-called therapies to change a person’s attractions.
In 2019, WHO moved the diagnosis once used for minors who say they see themselves differently out of its mental disorders chapter.
None of this settles questions of faith. It does mean no leading global health authority has ever found a medical basis for conversion therapy.
Direct Answer: The World Health Organization has never endorsed “conversion therapy.” In 1990, WHO removed homosexuality from its list of mental disorders. In 2012, its regional office for the Americas declared that there is “no medical indication for changing sexual orientation” and called these practices a serious threat to health and even life. In 2015, WHO joined eleven other United Nations agencies in condemning “unethical and harmful” so-called therapies aimed at changing a person’s attractions. In 2019, WHO moved the diagnosis once used for minors who say they see themselves differently out of its mental illness chapter entirely. None of this requires Christian parents to abandon scripture. It means the world’s leading health body has repeatedly found that changing a child is not a medical option worth paying for.
Where WHO’s Position Began: 1990
On May 17, 1990, WHO’s governing body voted to remove homosexuality from the mental disorders chapter of its diagnostic manual, the International Classification of Diseases. That date is now observed worldwide each year, a mark of how significant WHO considered the change. The decision reflected a simple conclusion: same-sex attraction alone was never evidence of illness needing a cure. WHO has never reversed that finding, and every statement it has issued since builds on it, including the reasoning behind what conversion therapy actually involves.
“No Medical Indication”: WHO’s 2012 Statement
In May 2012, on the 22nd anniversary of that decision, WHO’s regional office for the Americas issued a position statement titled “‘Cures’ for an Illness That Does Not Exist.” Its director at the time, Dr. Mirta Roses Periago, put it directly: “Since homosexuality is not a disorder or a disease, it does not require a cure. There is no medical indication for changing sexual orientation.” The statement called these so-called therapies a serious threat to health, well-being, and even life, and said they violate the ethical principles of health care.
Joining the United Nations in 2015
WHO did not stand alone for long. On September 29, 2015, it joined eleven other UN agencies, including UNICEF, in an unprecedented joint statement calling for an end to violence and discrimination against people based on their attractions or how they see themselves. The statement specifically condemned “unethical and harmful so-called ‘therapies’” practiced in medical settings, describing them as a form of abuse.
The 2019 Reclassification
In May 2019, WHO approved a new edition of its diagnostic manual, effective 2022, that moved the diagnosis once used for minors who say they are transgender, formerly filed as “gender identity disorder” under mental disorders, into a chapter on sexual health and renamed it “gender incongruence.” WHO called it a step toward recognizing that seeing oneself differently is not, on its own, evidence of mental illness.
What This Means for Christian Families
None of these decisions came from a court, and none settled a question of scripture. They are medical findings, not verdicts on faith. What they confirm is what CT4F has said consistently: no reputable medical body anywhere has found a scientific basis for changing a child’s attractions or how they see themselves. Selling a cure that the world’s own health authority says does not exist is a scam dressed up in a white coat. Even as courts here debate cases like Chiles v. Salazar, the global medical consensus has not moved in decades. You can trust that consensus and still raise your child within your faith. Loving your child and living out your convictions were never in conflict.
Frequently Asked Questions
Has WHO ever endorsed conversion therapy? No. Its record runs in the opposite direction, from removing homosexuality from its disorders list in 1990 to reclassifying related diagnoses out of its mental illness chapter in 2019.
What did WHO’s 2012 statement say? That there is no medical indication for changing someone’s attractions, that the practice is a serious threat to health and even life, and that it violates the ethical principles of health care.
Did WHO address minors who say they are transgender? Yes. In 2019, its manual moved “gender identity disorder” out of the mental disorders chapter and renamed it “gender incongruence.”
Does this mean Christian parents must change their beliefs? No. WHO’s findings are medical, not theological. Parents can accept that no credible health authority supports conversion therapy while still holding to their faith.
Where can I learn more about what conversion therapy is? CT4F’s conversion therapy explained guide covers the practice and the research behind why major health bodies, including WHO, have rejected it.
Sources and Further Reading
WHO’s Official Record on Conversion Therapy
PAHO/WHO: “Cures” for an Illness that Does Not Exist (2012 position statement)
UN News: WHO’s 2019 diagnostic manual update on “gender identity disorder”
CT4F Resources for Families
Publicaciones recientes
The World Health Organization's Position on "Conversion Therapy": A Summary for Faith-Based Parents
For more than three decades, the World Health Organization has said there is no medical basis for trying to change a child’s attractions or how they see themselves.
Quick Takeaways
In 1990, WHO removed homosexuality from its list of mental disorders, a decision now marked each May 17 around the world.
In 2012, WHO’s regional office for the Americas declared that there is no medical basis for trying to change someone’s attractions.
In 2015, WHO joined eleven other UN agencies in condemning “unethical and harmful” so-called therapies to change a person’s attractions.
In 2019, WHO moved the diagnosis once used for minors who say they see themselves differently out of its mental disorders chapter.
None of this settles questions of faith. It does mean no leading global health authority has ever found a medical basis for conversion therapy.
Direct Answer: The World Health Organization has never endorsed “conversion therapy.” In 1990, WHO removed homosexuality from its list of mental disorders. In 2012, its regional office for the Americas declared that there is “no medical indication for changing sexual orientation” and called these practices a serious threat to health and even life. In 2015, WHO joined eleven other United Nations agencies in condemning “unethical and harmful” so-called therapies aimed at changing a person’s attractions. In 2019, WHO moved the diagnosis once used for minors who say they see themselves differently out of its mental illness chapter entirely. None of this requires Christian parents to abandon scripture. It means the world’s leading health body has repeatedly found that changing a child is not a medical option worth paying for.
Where WHO’s Position Began: 1990
On May 17, 1990, WHO’s governing body voted to remove homosexuality from the mental disorders chapter of its diagnostic manual, the International Classification of Diseases. That date is now observed worldwide each year, a mark of how significant WHO considered the change. The decision reflected a simple conclusion: same-sex attraction alone was never evidence of illness needing a cure. WHO has never reversed that finding, and every statement it has issued since builds on it, including the reasoning behind what conversion therapy actually involves.
“No Medical Indication”: WHO’s 2012 Statement
In May 2012, on the 22nd anniversary of that decision, WHO’s regional office for the Americas issued a position statement titled “‘Cures’ for an Illness That Does Not Exist.” Its director at the time, Dr. Mirta Roses Periago, put it directly: “Since homosexuality is not a disorder or a disease, it does not require a cure. There is no medical indication for changing sexual orientation.” The statement called these so-called therapies a serious threat to health, well-being, and even life, and said they violate the ethical principles of health care.
Joining the United Nations in 2015
WHO did not stand alone for long. On September 29, 2015, it joined eleven other UN agencies, including UNICEF, in an unprecedented joint statement calling for an end to violence and discrimination against people based on their attractions or how they see themselves. The statement specifically condemned “unethical and harmful so-called ‘therapies’” practiced in medical settings, describing them as a form of abuse.
The 2019 Reclassification
In May 2019, WHO approved a new edition of its diagnostic manual, effective 2022, that moved the diagnosis once used for minors who say they are transgender, formerly filed as “gender identity disorder” under mental disorders, into a chapter on sexual health and renamed it “gender incongruence.” WHO called it a step toward recognizing that seeing oneself differently is not, on its own, evidence of mental illness.
What This Means for Christian Families
None of these decisions came from a court, and none settled a question of scripture. They are medical findings, not verdicts on faith. What they confirm is what CT4F has said consistently: no reputable medical body anywhere has found a scientific basis for changing a child’s attractions or how they see themselves. Selling a cure that the world’s own health authority says does not exist is a scam dressed up in a white coat. Even as courts here debate cases like Chiles v. Salazar, the global medical consensus has not moved in decades. You can trust that consensus and still raise your child within your faith. Loving your child and living out your convictions were never in conflict.
Frequently Asked Questions
Has WHO ever endorsed conversion therapy? No. Its record runs in the opposite direction, from removing homosexuality from its disorders list in 1990 to reclassifying related diagnoses out of its mental illness chapter in 2019.
What did WHO’s 2012 statement say? That there is no medical indication for changing someone’s attractions, that the practice is a serious threat to health and even life, and that it violates the ethical principles of health care.
Did WHO address minors who say they are transgender? Yes. In 2019, its manual moved “gender identity disorder” out of the mental disorders chapter and renamed it “gender incongruence.”
Does this mean Christian parents must change their beliefs? No. WHO’s findings are medical, not theological. Parents can accept that no credible health authority supports conversion therapy while still holding to their faith.
Where can I learn more about what conversion therapy is? CT4F’s conversion therapy explained guide covers the practice and the research behind why major health bodies, including WHO, have rejected it.
Sources and Further Reading
WHO’s Official Record on Conversion Therapy
PAHO/WHO: “Cures” for an Illness that Does Not Exist (2012 position statement)
UN News: WHO’s 2019 diagnostic manual update on “gender identity disorder”
CT4F Resources for Families