In the last century, the average age of puberty onset in girls has dropped by five years, with some girls experiencing signs as early as five years old.
The average age that girls start experiencing puberty is now 10 years old, according to new research in the UK. However, some pediatricians note that they’ve seen girls as young as 4 and 5 beginning to show signs. What? 4 or 5!? Why?
“The simple truth is we don’t know why it is happening,” says Professor Richard Sharpe, an expert in early puberty at the UK Medical Research Council. “Obesity is the biggest factor that we know of. [But] there’s clearly something else. Is it environmental chemicals, is it societal stress? I would say on the evidence, environmental factors are not a major player.”
Obesity is the biggest suspect, but according to Fox News, so is stress. Yes, believe it or not, children are more stressed than ever. Aside from the day to day stress kids face in school, research has shown that prolonged stress caused by family breakdowns and unstable homes could alter hormones in the body and speed up the onset of puberty.
This isn’t something to just sweep under the rug. Studies have shown that girls who mature earlier are more likely to eventually develop breast and uterine cancer, CNN reported of a similar 2010 study.
More research is needed on why it’s happening, but in the meantime, the medical community agrees that parents watch their children’s weight – and probably stress levels, too.
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