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Ask the Doctor: Why Are Some Girls Showing Signs of Puberty as Early as Age 7?
A recent report highlights an eyebrow-raising trend. Do fast food and skinny jeans play a part?
At a time when we are seeing women getting married later in life, it is interesting to note that, as girls, they are maturing earlier, based on a recently published study in the Journal of Pediatrics.
Several generations ago, and even at the time I was attending medical school in the ’70s, the expected onset of puberty was 12 to 14 years of age.
Shari Roan’s LA Times article on the study, “Some Girls’ Puberty Age Still Falling,” stated that 15% of Latina girls and 10% of Anglo girls are showing signs of puberty by age 7.
In my practice, 90% of my female patients are either white or Hispanic. And I am witnessing an increase in early breast development -- the first evidence of the onset of puberty – in younger girls. At first I attributed it to the increase in obesity rates in our country. But the researchers in this study don’t feel this is a major factor.
Frankly, I disagree. The onset of early puberty coincides remarkably with increases in childhood obesity. How else can we explain that we’re also seeing more and more cases of gynecomastia (breast development) in obese young boys?
The article mentions many other factors besides obesity -- diets rich in fats and sugar, exposure to hormones, decreases in physical activity, and exposure other chemicals, especially those found in plastics. These can increase the production of estrogen, and thus premature development of breast tissue.
But obesity is wreaking havoc with many children’s health and developmental issues. Just google “This is the first generation of American children who are facing shorter lifespans than their parents” and the recent coverage of First Lady Michelle Obama’s campaign to end childhood obesity.
However, there is one other factor related to early puberty that was not mentioned but that I think plays as much a role as these other factors.
Our young children today are exposed to a much faster lifestyle than previous generations. They are also under more stress and are expected to mature at a much younger age.
Maturity is thrust on them and their bodies respond accordingly.
I don’t have serious concerns regarding the early maturation of girls, but one thing does bother me, and this was illustrated to me by a young patient of mine who had entered early puberty.
She told me that a man kept staring at her, which made her feel “icky.”
What can parents do to protect their “mature” young daughters? Warn them that if anyone approaches them in ways that make them feel “icky,” they should report it right away.
One other bit of advice: help your daughters pick out clothes that are comfortable but don’t “enhance” their attributes. You would be surprised at the number of young teens (and their mothers) who arrive at my office wearing low-cut tops, not to mention those highly sexualized “skinny jeans.”
Little girls like to dress like “Mommy,” and if Mommy flaunts her attributes, so will they – on reaching their teen years, or even before.
Ramon Resa is pediatrician in Central California who has been in private practice for more than 20 years. His recently published memoir, “Out of the Fields: My Journey from Farmworker Boy to Pediatrician,” has inspired readers nationwide and made him a sought-after motivational speaker. Learn more at www.ramonresamd.com.
Links:
http://www.latimes.com/news/science/la-sci-puberty-20100809,0,830077.story
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/17/health/17obese.html
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/weightloss/2010-05-11-michelle-obama-obesity_N.htm
More About: exercise, health, health and wellness, medical news, menstruation, obesity, physical changes, puberty, weight problems, puberty
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Are we overlooking other negative side effects on society that these changes bring on? According to the CDC young men are having sex at older ages and girls are having sex at younger ages. This discrepancy is creating problems throughout our young adults.
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"Maturity is thrust on them and their bodies respond accordingly"
and you call yourself a doctor?
These girls learn by example. Their mothers are fat pigs and surprise surprise these little girls turn out to be fat pigs as well.
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Chickens are fed hormones and bred to produce larger breasts. Americans are eating more chicken. I wonder if some of the residual hormones in chicken are having an affect on child development after several years of chicken consumption.
We use growth hormones to increase food production and then eat the food. If you look at countries that do not use growth hormones this is not happening to their children. Also most tap water has prescription drugs in the water from estrogen, prozac and other medications. Lets address the real problem.
This article was full of opinions, not facts. My daughter, who is not fat, reached puberty much younger than I did. Explain that.
To the previous poster, the explanation is right there in the article:
"The article mentions many other factors besides obesity -- diets rich in fats and sugar, exposure to hormones, decreases in physical activity, and exposure other chemicals, especially those found in plastics. These can increase the production of estrogen, and thus premature development of breast tissue."
It is all the hormones, fats, sugars, etc in the foods our children eat. 40 years ago high fructose corn syrup and other additives didn't exist in our food supply. Beyond that, many studies have shown that people have increasingly unrealistic concepts of overweight and obesity, so even your simple declaration of your daughter not being "fat" may be inaccurate.
It's all the growth hormones in the food, the milk, meat etc.
You are all stupid. Hormones in food are destroyed by cooking, and the trace amounts of chemicals are so minimal as to have no effect on people.
I disagree with the last argument. On the contrary, young kids these days are not "stressed", and I argue that kids just 40-50 years ago, walk to school, help out with their parents work in the farm, milk the cows, help with household chores, eat home cooked foods, and play outdoors. These days kids are driven to school, even if it is just 2 blocks away, they stay home watching TV, play computer games. Food are not scarce, they are easily available off the shelves in grocery stores
, but people eat TV dinners, order delivery pizza, eat out in restaurants. City life and expensive homes mean cramped apartments, with not much room to move about, no backyard to run around? Both obesity and this lifestyle have set up the girls for early puberty. Nature prepares
our body on to the next stage if nothing is holding you back, such as a hard life in th farm. There is no reason for the girls' bodies to postpone puberty. There's calories aplenty (obesity) and their bodies feel there are no stressors. Therefore, ready to have achild, therefore puberty sets in. My humble opinion, a pediatrician in Los Angeles.
What about the effects of soy-based infant formula and high amounts of soy in our diets (cheap soy-based hamburgers; cows, pigs, and chickens being given soy-based feed, thus ending up in our meat, milk, and eggs)? This may also play a large role as soy products are high in phyto-estrogens (unlike fermented soy products).
These guys were just staring at the boobies. They not going to bother anyone unless the girl is hot in the azz for some puzzy
"What can parents do to protect their “mature” young daughters? Warn them that if anyone approaches them in ways that make them feel “icky,” they should report it right away."
Really?
Talk about instilling paranoia!
Well, this certainly is a man's view... I don't disagree with a high fat, hormone and chemical laden diet pushing bodies to develop faster - but really. Trying to instill fear in parents about the way their kids are seen in public by blaming them for the way kids are dressed? I can PERSONALLY vouch for the stupidity of that one. I don't generally like the message parents give their kids by letting them believe that sexualized dress should be the primary goal of their junior high years. But it has NOTHING to do with this article, unless this doctor thinks that whipping people into kitchen-sinking hysteria is the way to combat an issue. Fifty years ago, nobody talked to kids about any of this. It was before the era of sizzler dresses and hot pants. You wore little plaid jumpers and had your hair in plaits or a bob... and STILL, if the local perv happened to be hanging round the school yard ( and he did, and nobody thought to find out what he was doing there, back then), you were going to feel "icky".
You are delusional if you think our current society expects more maturity than previous incarnations of society. In fact we treat people (well if they are white, or rich and another race) as if they were children until they are at the very least out of college. Rewind two hundred years ago and children were working on farms, in factories, stores and hell even brothels. No we actually baby and coddle "children" today. While environmental factors do effect gene expression, logic predicts the opposite trend we are seeing. You might want to review your history books instead of regurgitating fear mongering uncorroborated nonsense.
Any blog that doesn't monitor and remove comment spam (if not prevent it) probably doesn't take itself very seriously.
Our house is as hormone-free as I can make it (including our milk, chicken, & beef) and we eat as many organic products as we can afford (mostly milk & produce) because I believe these two things (excess hormones & pesticides) can contribute to health problems for my children later in life.
However, one thing we avoid like the plague is SOY based products.
I've seen several young girls whose families are also organic, hormone-free who are developing early (around 10 & 11, developing breasts and beginning menses) and the common link is SOY-tofu, soy milk, edamame, etc.
SOY=ESTROGEN-I would like to see studies done on this segment of society and not just the obese/overweight kids.
I agree-the "maturity is thrust upon them and their bodues respond," is absurd. Societal pressure to look and act more adult beyond their years, while appalling, does not cause your body to mature more quickly. This person may have been a doctor for many years but the need this guy to receive an upgrade in his medical education is clear. That is not how biology works.
in what age boys puberty nowadays happen?
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It's the growth hormones in the milk and meat we feed our children. This is why I have gone as organic as possible to prevent my children from getting some chemicals that I can't pronounce. custom essays, college essays
The only thing that even remotely makes sense is the hormone-ingestion angle. Factory-farmed dairy is packed full of artificial growth hormones. I'd wager that you wouldn't see such an early onset of puberty with either vegan children or children whose parents don't feed them hormone-laced dairy products.
How could a doctor possibly make the argument that obesity causes the early onset of puberty? That doesn't even make sense. Nor does the fact that "maturity is thrust on them and their bodies respond accordingly." That has to be one of the most ridiculous things I've ever read.
As a girl progresses through the stages of puberty, she will grow taller and her body shape will change. Her chest will appear less flat as her breasts begin to grow. The first sign that a girl's breasts are developing is when small bumps (sometimes called "breast buds") become noticeable on her chest. Some girls find that their breasts or nipples start to tingle or itch whilst they grow. These feelings stop when the breasts stop growing. Bookkeeping Certification