In fact, one comprehensive study of children raised by lesbian mothers or gay fathers concluded that children raised by same-sex parents did not differ from other children in terms of emotional functioning, sexual orientation, stigmatization, gender role behavior, behavioral adjustment, gender identity, learning and grade point averages. Most research studies show that children with two moms or two dads fare just as well as children with heterosexual parents. Although most children of same-sex couples are biological children of one of the parents, a growing number are the result of donor insemination, surrogacy, foster care and adoption. The rise in same-sex parenting is partially due to the increase in options available for same-sex couples to become parents. Some same-sex couples may decide to have a child within their relationship, while others may bring children from previous heterosexual or same-sex unions. It is difficult to obtain an accurate count of same-sex parent families because many lesbians and gay men are not open about their sexual orientation due to fears of discrimination, such as loss of employment, loss of child custody, and antigay violence. There are approximately 594,000 same-sex partner households, according to the 2000 Census, and there are children living in approximately 27 percent of those households.
Studies estimate that between 1 and 9 million children in the United States have at least one parent who is lesbian or gay.
