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Girls are hitting puberty earlier than ever, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Some kids are as young as eight years old! I cannot imagine this! I remember 6th grade being early to start when I was that age!
They're still learning how to read and write and add and subtract, but health professionals say girls as young as eight years old are starting to show signs of early puberty. I think body weight probably has a lot to do with why we're seeing girls have periods earlier and see girls mature earlier. Researchers report girls are now getting their periods around the age of 12, down from the average age of almost 15 in the late 18-hundreds.
Doctors point to environmental toxins and weight gain. We know that the more fat cells a girl has, the more likely they are to have excess estrogen. That excess estrogen could raise concerns later on in a woman's life.
The more estrogen you have exposed to your body, perhaps it increases the risk of breast cancer, possibly uterine cancer. And that's not the only worry. their bodies may be maturing where their mind may not be and I think that can cause some social pressures leading to social and psychological implications that a young girl may not be ready to deal with.
What is the answer to this problem? This article says girls who grow up without fathers and those exposed to chemicals are most at risk. It sounds like another case of no one really knows why, so many hypothesis are being tested.
Have you see this new trend with your kids or their friends?
-NewsAnchorMom Jen
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