Puberty is starting earlier

[EdinburghFeminist]

I thought this was very interesting (and quite scary, particularly as someone with a 4yo girl). Puberty is starting significantly earlier and no-one knows exactly why but there is also an increase in mental health issues associated in girls who start puberty early.

www.facebook.com/316489315054055/posts/5091329927569946/?d=n

I'm hoping period pants and swimwear makes our daughters lives a lot easier.

Huge numbers of women take the contraceptive pill. The sewage facilities are not good at removing those hormones as the urine is processed into drinking water (those particular chemicals are very hard to break down). Tap water in the UK has hormones from the contraceptive pill in it. 🤢 The question isn’t whether that affects children, but how.

www.purewaterpeople.co.uk/blog/oestrogen-in-water/

Also cows are given extra oestrogen to make them prodcue more milk and yep, those hormones end up in their milk. Ever had a latte or eaten a cheese sanwich?

☹️

I'm in no position to assess this paper as it's archaeological but there are some interesting distinctions between the age of entering puberty, the age when menarche happens, and the age at which puberty ends.

Puberty is divided into five clinical stages, with pre-puberty at stage one and onset (or thelarche) at stage two. Menarche (a girls first period) occurs at stage three. The age at which a child enters puberty (stage one) varies. Today, puberty onset occurs between the ages of ten and 14 in girls and 12 to 16 in boys, with some ethnic groups starting around a year earlier. The end of puberty, or full maturation, is reached by 13-17 years for girls, and 15-18 years for boys.
…
A girl’s first period is a significant milestone in her development, but it is a highly variable and environmentally fragile indicator of maturation. Today, menarche starts at a median age of 12.5 years in the UK, with 2-3% of girls experiencing menarche at ten.

In England, just before the industrial revolution, historical sources suggest menarche occurred between 12-14 years. By the 1840s, girls had their first period between 14-17 years. While we have a rich record for ages of menarche, there are no written sources to tell us when children in the past first entered puberty.

We're introduced to a fascinating study about bones in medieval England and using bone markers to assess the stages of puberty.

The average age at which children entered puberty was the same as for most boys and girls today: between ten to 12 years. But medieval teenagers took longer to reach the later milestones, including menarche.

The adolescent growth spurt that signals the most obvious external physical changes occurred between 11-16 years, and menarche at 12-16 years, with the average age at 15 years. In medieval London, some girls were as old as 17 before they had a period. And boys and girls did not complete their adolescent growth spurt until 17 or 18 years.

For these teenagers, growing up in a rapidly expanding and overcrowded London, 26% had not completed puberty before they died at 25 years of age. The age at which modern and medieval children progressed through the pubertal stages after puberty onset was different.

research.reading.ac.uk/research-blog/children-arent-starting-puberty-younger-medieval-skeletons-reveal/

Here's one article showing that over a century ago girls started their period at around 16. Like I said, now the average age is 10

www.sciencealert.com/girls-are-going-through-puberty-earlier-than-ever-before-with-long-term-effects

That's a huge difference hence the comment about girls being physically but not emotionally ready. You can prepare girls as much as you want and have as many great products as you want, nevertheless it's a lot for a 10 year old to deal with.

Of course It's not the only reason girls are identifying out of their sex but I does give a bit of context as to one of the reasons that they might be.

Early puberty also has other physical and mental health impacts.

Yes they aren't fun but they were probably far worse fir people decades ago

Most things were worse decades ago, they just didn't have the option to opt out. And actually I don't think things have moved on, there is no accurate way to predict when they will happen, or how heavy it will be, and the same crap medication which doesn't really stop the pain.

It's not an inability to deal with puberty, it's the fact that someone is offering a magic wand poisoned chalice

That's what I'm.questioning dino

Because at least in part, I think.its important to ask and at least attempt to try and separate out, if some of the problem is actually being created by those flogging the " solution"

When children have so much access now to the Internet and are hearing things like puberty might make u want to hurt or kill yourself and how all these adults would have been.happier of they'd have had access to Lupron or whatever, it must have an affect.

The flip side of all the awareness and information and solutions etc in.some.ways seems to simultaneously be responsible for making you feel there's something wrong because there's nothing wrong.

I was told by a paediatrician friend that the research indicates that a high protein and fat diet is a major contributor even if they are not considered obese. They have done population level studies which indicates higher bmi at age 5 is an indicator (not all but increases likelihood). Whilst by no means any sort of proof, my 2 DD's (skinny unlike me, started at 15&16, my dsd's (both overweight) were 10&12, no shared parentage so could be coincidental but across the population that's what they are seeing on average

Could it be at least partly, that stuff like puberty is now discussed and researched?

I was skinny and smallest in class and started periods in primary school. I think there is a genetic aspect though as my mother and sister were the same

I was 15 but very sporty. My mother started at 10. My children are also slow growers.

I wonder if there could be an inverse thing there? that girls who will start puberty earlier will also have some factor that will give them a higher childhood BMI?

I think its also worth noting that the medication used to stop/slow down puberty also stops mental development.. so anyone feeling its too much for a 10 year old to deal with ( not denying it would be difficult) well delaying it won't help. They will just ne 12/13/14 years of age with the same emotional and mental maturity of that 10 year old who started medication.

So effectively it wouldn't help. It wouldn't change anything. Just instead of being 10 and maybe still figuring out how to deal with them in high school , you'd be 16 trying to figure out how to get through your gcse exam with out leaking.

As a late starter I can assure you that that is hard enough without being stuck with thr maturity of a 10 year old still.

Ultimately probably the best thing we can do is be there for our dds. Do our best to equip them as well as possible and keep tabs on their Internet usage in the hope that they don't start ordering shit online thinking it will solve problems.

Isn’t there something too about chemicals leeching out of plastics? The reason why BPA etc. is used much less is because there’s something in it that mimics oestrogen.

@Whatwouldscullydo
I was 13 when I started. My best friend who I virtually lived with was one of six sisters, four older so the whole period thing held no mystery for me. It was part of life and something you knew you would just have to crack on with. Having said that, I don't think I would have been so able to cope so easily if I was 11 or younger.

man

I was a member if a face book group who on more than one occasion has discussed drugging 9 year olds and lengthy chats about how awful.it is and woman hood etc

I often wondered how much of that panic would be passed down onto the girl in question.

I'm not saying that kids wouldn't ever find it hard or ever have trouble. But if it bothers parebts enough to consider drugging them, and the inability to see that a 9 year old with periods and a bra is still the same child as the day before, how.much of this will the kid pick up on. And surely that will not help them at all.

All the issues I had at 16 i would have had at 10. Because it was down to not being properly equipped and a complete lack of information from my parents.

Stress stimulates hormone production which has a knock-on effect on other body hormones and responses.

It's my inexpert view that the "stress" experienced by so many children today is in fact plain OVERSTIMULATION. Far too many screens, too much TV, too much chirping noise, flashing lights, high speed images, electronic games, rushing from one organised activity to the next. An all-day consumption of processed food, junk and snacks stuffed with chemicals and additives. The social demands of phones, games, constant communications , comparisons, consumerism, organised playdates , the modern substitute for unsupervised play or doing nothing at all.

Disgusting?

"Unpredictable" Ok, fair enough

"Painful" yes, but it can be dealt with.

"Limiting" - not sure what you're suggesting here. I had heavy and painful periods- I didn't find them limiting.

"Disgusting" ? There's nothing disgusting about periods. I hope you aren't passing that message on to your daughters and sons.

My eldest started puberty at 9yo and by 10yo had started her periods. She is now 13, and very tall. Not at all overweight.

My 11yo son is nowhere near puberty.

My 9yo daughter has started to develop breast buds but nothing further from what we can tell.

It is interesting how young they start now. I dont really recall girls having full on boobs in primary school like they do now.

I started at 15. Tall, very slim. Daughter has exactly the same build, 14 now and still no period. Both of us grew up with extremely low levels of processed food, I would say similar levels of physical activity.

I feel incredibly sad for very young girls who have to deal with periods before they are ready and yes they are many health problems associated with early menarche. I’ve read that menopause is a lot easier on those who begin menstruating later, too.

Studies seem to link increased weight and a lack of exercise with earlier puberty. Girls who participate in sport especially quite seriously with a good few hours of training a week tend to go through puberty in mid teenage years much as we used to.

Can we stop with the early period shaming? It's their diet, it's because they're over weight - it's all their mothers fault for not ensuring they're exercising enough and spending too much time on screens.

These are general societal shifts that affect most people.

Even if you do everything right there is no guarantee that your DD won't start early.

DDs school were great when DD and another girl started their periods in Year 6. Their classroom was top floor and fairly isolated anyway, with one separate toilet with its own basin, within easy access. The school set it up for the girls to use, stocked it up with pads and liners, wipes etc. It also prompted a grown up discussion on periods within the class, and what were they like, and how did they feel, and the girls were very much involved in this discussion, controlled by the teacher, so it was all very supportive and informative. It normalised it. The girls were also just able to leave lessons and pop to the toilet when they needed to without asking.

However, big caveat, this was a very small independent girls school, so they had the bandwidth and the environment to be able to do this.

It's a shame that anyone finds their periods/bodily processes so difficult.

I understand when I had painful periods some of the issues, but as I've got older it's got easier, and I actually enjoy the process now.

Sounds a bit hippy, but it feels like marking the passing seasons of the body.

Curious why anyone would find it 'disgusting' in any way.

Seems related to height to me. My son's started at 11/12 (shortest) and 9/10 (tallest) so has to be something to do with nutrition or hormones in the water supply surely. They're still little boys in feelings and outlook though until at least 16.

Sounds a bit hippy, but it feels like marking the passing seasons of the body

I'm about the least hippy-dippy person you'll find , but yes, I know what you mean.