Why more girls are experiencing earlier puberty

My DDs breasts have started budding she's 9 I've had to purchase crop top bras with cups as you could see them under her shirt. I'm gutted for her I didn't start puberty until 12-13. I didn't get a period until I was 14 I was short and skinny. DD is 145 cm and 40kg so I think she will start earlier than I did.

It is interesting isn't it. I was 13 and a half, tall, skinny and had been a vegetarian for a couple of years. I remember reading in the Usborne "Facts of Life" book that my mum got me that periods usually started about a year after breasts started developing.

My middle school (9-13) didn't allow girls to wear trousers at the time. Luckily the upper school did, and they were dark and had good sized pockets. I also remember at middle school that not all of the cubicles had a sanitary bin, so others would "know" if you waited for the period one. I do hope they've sorted shit like that out now.

I’m tall and didn’t get my period until I was 14 (34 years ago). I was easily one of, if not the, last among my friends / class.

DD, also tall, is 12 and no signs yet.

A friend’s DD got hers at 10 - which seems early to me, but my friend got her first period early too.

12 seemed to be the (unscientific) average to me then, as it is now.

Obviously there are always outliers.

It's not actual weight but body fat % that is a factor in puberty starting.

That's interesting. I wonder what other factors affect it as my mother started at 10 (in the late 1950s) and my sister at 11 (in the mid 90s) and both were soooo petite... Short and also very skinny. I have a bigger build than my sister and I didn't start until 14.

I think you were taller because you were earlier starting puberty.

My 11 year old is tall but I suspect she will stop growing as quick soon and other girls will begin to catch up.

My grandmother is 74 and started her period age 8. My mum was 9. And I was 10.

Now, I've noticed in countries with more melanin in their skin start earlier - just a casual observation, don't shoot me down please

My black friends at school all started early. I am Hispanic and started earlier. Those who are British started later, including my cousins etc

Can i just add that although obviously the mum in the article , we can all hugly sympathise with regards to her daughter with special needs who was felt to need extra time to prepare, that maybe the drs should know that as Lupron also stunts mental development how was the child meant to prepare when her brain would be in the same state after as it would be before.

This cannot be an unusual issue so are there any kind of support groups/clinics set up to discuss and manage this issue so parents and child can be prepared. Or so they just make money off medication that kicks the can down the road?

Hmm I actually find that article a little disturbing.

The photos . I mean who agreed to that 😱

I feel its almost scare mongering about what many of us were told is normal age range (8/9-16) then casually dropping in the fact that it can all be stopped with Lupron.

Part of the problems the kids faced appear to be a lack of thought . The school uniform not having pockets fir example. And parents being completely unprepared and not preparing the kids.

Seems to me that as usual the problems are everyone else but somehow its still the girls bodies that are wrong.

I dont think its a coincidence that when there's a way to make money out of panicking parents that puberty is suddenly so problematic and pathologized.

There were some interesting points but I dont feel it told us much we didn't already know. Access to better nutrition, food thats been tampered with, obesity etc

@rainydaysandcake
glad you’ve got the help. Sometimes other peoples advice can be rubbish. I didn’t want to say before I knew you’d had her checked out but precocious puberty can also be a symptom of things like a brain tumour so always needs medical attention.

precocious puberty in girls is any sign under age 8 (so breast buds).

@Yolande7 @MaryGubbins

Thank you yes she has been seen by endocrinologist and started treatment.

In one way I was lucky I spotted signs of early puberty and raised it with GP but everyone kept telling me she was fine and just tall.
I know she's fine, but I and neither was the GP expecting her to start periods so early.

Key lesson is mums should def trust gut instinct

Thank you!

I was . DD was nearly 14 and I was so relieved, it totally felt like the right time, she was ready for it

The female ‘shape’ has also changed - a lot of fat stored round the middle, thinner limbs, wider shoulders etc. I have three daughters and I don’t think this describes them or their friends. I started very late and am still waiting for menopause.

That was his second wife...whom he 'nicked' from the French king IIRC.

King John married in 1200, his wife was is thought to have been 12, but could have been anywhere between 9-17. The general rule of thumb for a girl to marry in medieval times was once puberty had started so from roughly age 12.

I don't how or if this changed during the industrial revolution through to modern day.

Started my period a couple of months before I turned 11.

I'm 50 now and still fucking bleeding.

I'm starting to think it'll never end. 40 fucking years.

Plus the fact that drs don't seem to know (or care) about any implications long term of early menarche.

@rainydaysandcake , @MaryGubbins is right. Your daughter falls into the age bracket for precocious puberty. That has implications for her height and her mental wellbeing. I would read up on precocious puberty, talk to an endicrinologist and make an informed choice, in case you have not already done so.

We have two family members who had precocious puberty. One was not medicated. She had body image problems for a while, because she looked so different from her friends. She did not want to do any activities which showed her body (like swimming, gymnastics, etc.). The hormonal changes were also very challenging for her and her family. At a very young age, she had to deal with boys and men hitting on her, because they thought she was much older.

The other girl was medicated and that worked out much better. She never looked much different from her friends, always felt good about her body and her brain had more time to develop before having to deal with puberty. She had more time being a child. There are a lot of things to consider.

I d8nt think that’s surprising seeing that covid has some impact on women menstruation in the first place….

@ArabellaScott it’s very anecdotal but I know if a few young teen who started their periods just after catching covid. All around 10~12yo. It seems it was also a bit if a surprise for all the mums I know.

What fir me is surprising is that they all seem to have had just one Orion and then stop for several months before starting again. Not the whole cycle is sometimes short/long etc… but 6~9 months Wo anything at all.

Interesting, I was just discussing the ‘spermageddon’ with DH (no idea how we got onto that!). I started my periods at 13, which seemed average in the early 2000s. I definitely think something is messing with women’s hormones. Which is why they’re much more likely to be overweight and have reproductive issues. The female ‘shape’ has also changed - a lot of fat stored round the middle, thinner limbs, wider shoulders etc.

You're right! I'm out of date!
Sorry.
Plastics, however, are quite interesting!

Back in the early 1970s, my best friend at school started her periods at age 11. But she was unusual.

I recently found a photo of me aged ~16 ad honestly, by today's standards I look about 9 or 10!

I've been asking this question for years about HRT the peri and menopause but never found an answer. I'd love to know if there is a link to when you started your periods to when you will enter and go through menopause.

Logically my brains says we have xxx amount of eggs so they must have a set timeframe? Fascinating.

Modibodi teenage ones come in very small sizes. Those have been the biggest hit with my DD. As have their period swimsuits. She is a competitive swimmer and they have been great.

I was 11, as was my mum, as was my gran (who was born in the 1920s). My DD also started hers at 11 too.