New evidence has shown that the brain activity of transgender individuals closely resembles the brain activity of their identified gender.

In a study of 160 participants, biological males who experience gender dysphoria were shown to have neurological patterns similar to those in biological females. The Belgian study, conducted by Julie Bakker of the University of Liege, used MRIs to scan the brains of children and teenagers who had been previously diagnosed with gender dysphoria. The results demonstrated that the transgender boys’ brain activity resembled that of cisgender boys and transgender girls’ brains resembled cisgender girls.