Obesity in US Girls Triggers Early Puberty

A recent study finds that girls who are obese are more likely to experience puberty earlier than their peers. Dr. Frank Biro, a pediatrics professor at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, stated, “The girls who are obese are clearly maturing earlier . . . BMI is, we found, the biggest single factor for the onset of puberty.” Biro and his team of researchers conducted a study of 1,200 girls in three major U.S. cities. The girls in the study were 6 to 8 years old, and the team measured and followed their BMI and maturation rate. The onset of puberty was based on breast development only, and it did not include a look at the onset of menstruation. The team cannot say exactly why the obesity seems to be linked to puberty. One hypothesis is that the extra pounds make the body believe it has enough energy to enter the reproductive phase of life.

“The impact of earlier maturation in girls has important clinical implications involving psychosocial and biologic outcomes,” said Biro. “The current study suggests clinicians may need to redefine the ages for both early and late maturation in girls.”

In general, the onset of puberty has begun earlier and earlier with each decade. Biro and his team did emphasize that obesity cannot be called the only cause of early puberty. Chemicals in the water and the food could also be culprits of the trend.

The results showed that white girls entered puberty on average at 9.7 years old, which is three to four months younger than the average age reported by scientists in a 1997 study, and much younger than the average age suggested by data from the 1960s.

The results of this study likely reflect what is happening in Canada and doctors are seeing the same trend at clinics in this country, said Dr. Jean-Pierre Chanoine, a pediatric endocrinologist at British Columbia’s Children’s Hospital.

“It’s really the parents who are anxious,” Chanoine said. “It’s not like it’s huge breast development, they just notice it and then they come to the clinic.”

On The Web:
Obesity linked to early puberty in girls, study finds
http://www.nbcnews.com/health/obesity-linked-early-puberty-us-girls-study-finds-8C11514727