The mayor of a small town in Peru has warned that chemicals in the provincial water supply could turn his male citizens gay.
Jose Benitez Pantoja, mayor of Huarmey in the province of Ancash, said that contamination of water with the metal strontium could lead to a reduction in male hormones and, as a result, turn men gay.
“We’re worried that Huarmey’s water has strontium and manganese and we are in danger. Strontium unfortunately reduces the male hormones,” he said, talking to RPP.
Experts have dismissed his claims, noting, however, that drinking strontium could instead lead to bone cancer, anaemia and cardiovascular problems.
The incident is reminiscent of a claim last year by the president of Bolivia Evo Morales who said that eating mass-produced hormone-loaded chicken is turning men gay.
He later said that his statement has been exaggerated and misunderstood.
