Girls Turning Into Women Too Quickly :

Each generation grows up more quickly... Our parents didn’t engage in premarital sex, birth control was only used by "hippies" and women's bodies were kept clothed. My generation (those of us now in our early 30's) grew up faster; we dated a lot of guys, had our choice of birth control and wanted to seem older than we were. Today’s young girls are reaching puberty and everything associated with it, well before they want to or are ready.

Puberty refers to the physical changes such as breast development, pubic hair growth, body odor and menstruation, by which a child's body becomes an adult body capable of reproduction. Menstruation typically occurs two years after breast development. When girls are entering puberty as early as 8 years of age, and some even younger, we have to wonder why is this happening. Genetics, environmental conditions and obesity are all factors. Genetics
Is premature puberty an inherited condition? Yes, say some experts. Issues can range from inheriting a certain gene that allows the body to break down testosterone, to having a thyroid problem, to being a certain race. Various studies have shown that African-American girls tend to reach puberty, on average, a year earlier than white girls. The landmark Herman-Giddens study of 17,000 girls published in 1997 found, for the first time, that about 15 percent of white girls started to grow breasts and pubic hair as young as 8 years old, while the percentage for black girls was three times as high. Today, half of all black girls are said to reach puberty by age 8.

Environmental Conditions
How we live and what we eat also strongly influences the age at which girls reach puberty.

Girls who eat too much accumulate excess body fat, which signals to the brain the availability of resources for initiation of puberty and fertility. Fat makes estrogen, and too much estrogen leads to the development of female characteristics, such as breast growth. The storage of extra fat prohibits the body from being able to cleanse itself of toxins, such as hormones found in foods and chemicals found in the environment (see below).

Until now, it has been unclear whether earlier puberty leads to weight gain or vice versa; however, a new study proves that obesity leads to premature puberty. A multiyear study done by the University of Michigan’s Mott Children’s Hospital followed a group of 354 girls aged 3 years old and concluded that "Girls were classified as at risk for being overweight if their body mass index (a measurement of weight related to age and height) was between the 85th and 95th percentiles, and defined as overweight if the measurement was greater than the 95th percentile." Using this measurement, more than half of these girls were declared obese and as having reached puberty by age 9; nearly two dozen reported having their first menstrual period by age 11. Calculate your child's (and your) BMI.

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