Last month I made a cake for my daughter’s ninth birthday. She wanted watermelon balls and balloons hung to the trees. She received her presents joyfully- a stuffed animal, beading kit, gyroscope, and went off to play in a frosting induced bliss.
Yesterday I had to buy her a bra.
What is going on that our children are entering puberty so quickly? Is she alone in this?
From CNN:
OK, she was getting dark hair on her legs at 8 and there were some afternoons when I suggested she visit the deodorant. But I was 12 before I needed this. And guys, trust me when I say that a kid who can’t find her flip flips isn’t ready for this.
So why?
In this matter we’ve done the best we can, while realizing that there are pesticides all around us that we aren’t aware of. My mom is ORTHO woman- I am LIKE HELL woman. But we go to parks, visit folks…
We even buy organic milk just to avoid the growth hormones.
What else?
Not this bundle of muscle. She rides dressage, jumps for hours on the trampoline, runs circuits aroundd the yard, scoots up and down the block at amazing speeds and does pull ups on her loft bed for fun. Her legs and arms are rock solid. Her belly is too, which is why I couldn’t figure out what all that jiggling was last time she trotted.
Verdict? Not applicable.
So I have a lovely young girl who is undergoing changes that should be left for later years. This is happening more frequently. We also live in a highly sexualized culture, where women are valued above all for their ability to titilate men. And Georgio is likely to get 2 Supremes which makes my daughter more at risk for losing her ability to choose what happens with her body.
So we’ll muddle through, but I really am concerned with this as a worldwide change. Has anyone else out there noticed this happening to kids within their sphere?
I can so relate to this! I have been talking about this issue a lot with my friend, whose daughter is 10. Mine is 11 and has already started her period when she was 10. I have to remind my kid to wear deoderant almost every day.
This is absolutely way before anyone I knew, or myself, when I was growing up.
I have heard a lot of theories, including the amount of processed foods we eat. I definitely think there is something in our environment that is triggering early maturation, but I have yet to see a definitive study on it. I am not apt to buy the obesity idea either because I see this happening in many communities without obesity. For example, in my daughter’s 5th grade, 70% or so of the girls were petite asians. Among them, several had also stated menstruating. In fact, I was astonished that so many of Classmates had started before even her!
This is a disturbing trend, and you are not alone in your feelings.
I’m still stuck…
As in how to exit…the country? I don’t understand.
my wife is constantly insisting that I should grow up… ; )
That was great.
I am convinced the recombinant bovine growth hormone (r-BGH) is the culprit.
We only drink organic milk and try to stick with non-rBGh dairy products whenever we can. My boys look like 10 and 12 year old boys…which may put them at a disadvantage, but none of us are ready for them to hit puberty yet!
Chemistry like this is an interesting problem. There really is no reason not to use these compounds if they really do have an advantage… Provided that we’ve thoroughly investigated the disadvantages and consequences, and have employed appropriate safeguards and protective measures. As-is, we perform only the most cursory field investigations, active inquiry into consequences is discouraged by big business (see the Texas beef cartels’ reaction to BSE investigations), and often have no protective measures whatsoever. The primary cause of this seems to be a steady weakening (or failure to update; they amount to the same thing) of environmental laws since Reagan came into power. Many of these measures are considered profit-enhancing only because the corporation employing the chemical does not have to deal directly with the full cost.
Many of these measures are considered profit-enhancing only because the corporation employing the chemical does not have to deal directly with the full cost.
Ah, I believe you have hit the nail on the head. Moreover, if we had universal health care in the US, perhaps our government would be more concerned about properly monitoring/regulating what the food industry was feeding to us, because they would ultimately have to bear the financial burden of disease…
I’ve been reading “Fast Food Nation” this week, and it makes very glad that I gave up beef years ago, and stick to non-hormone/non-antibiotic chicken and pork.
possible culprits for this problem. Estrogen-like compounds found in the environment are possibly the leading prime suspect.
http://www.acnatsci.org :
<snip>
One example of potential endocrine disrupters is a group of chemicals known as nonylphenols. Metabolites of a widely used organic synthetic, nonylphenols are artificial molecules with nine carbons attached to a “phenol” ring (see Figure 1). Several types of them were among the chemicals detected by the USGS survey.

Figure 1: The chemical structure of a typical nonylphenol molecule. Note the
“phenol” ring of carbons and the nine carbon atoms forming the attached chain.
Research as early as the 1930’s (and again in the 1970’s) indicated that nonylphenols have molecular characteristics that mimic estrogen. By the 1990’s, laboratory tests began to suggest they could have “estrogenic” effects on cells of various experimental animals. (4) Given both their relative obscurity to the public and their potential for environmental impact, nonylphenols provide a useful illustration of factors that influence the emergence of contaminants.
This can actually be a huge problem in males as well. There is evidence that fertility levels in males is falling.
Our nations difficulty with obesity from over nutrition can also lead to earlier menses because Estrogen production can be increased.
Estradiol production is most commonly thought of as an endocrine product of the ovary; however, there are many tissues that have the capacity to synthesize estrogens from androgen and to use estrogen in a paracrine or intracrine fashion. In addition, other organs such as the adipose tissue can contribute significantly to the circulating pool of estrogens
But Growth Hormone causes a condition known as Acromegaly when excess is present in humans.
<snip>
Acromegaly Complications
Acromegaly can be a serious health problem.
I’m wondering if there is something I’ve missed that is leading you to believe that it is the BGH that is the main problem with early puberty? I’m truly asking this to look at new data. I’ve been out of the loop for awhile. Do you have any links that have convinced you of this?
Great information. More research topics for me!
As to the BGH we had heard some early evidence a few years back that suggested the possibility that there might be some concern. Since the health of your kids is never something to risk, we made the switch to local organic milk and hadn’t looked back. So while I wasn’t convinced that BGH was harmful- I certainly wasn’t convinced that it was fine. There seemed to be no reason whatever to risk it.
You have raised an interesting point though and one that deserves more research. I’ll see what I can find from an unbiased study (ie not funded by an interest group or endorsed by Bush).
I certainly understand your concern about BGH in dairy products. Research has shown that it is present in milk. I think until we know more about the effects that it will have on humans – avoidance is reasonable. Even though it will cut into Monsanto’s profits <sarcasm>.
I’m not an endocrinologist and was wondering if BGH had any documented estrogenic effects that I had not been aware of.
And don’t trust a damn thing the Bush administration says about science of any type! At this point I wouldn’t trust them to tell me how a vinegar/baking soda Volcano works. I just want to scream whenever I hear them even use the word “science”.
Always look for a better source – I think any 10 year old child may be vastly superior.
You are one very cool person.
Monsanto bet the company with BGH and it is the only product holding off bankruptcy: don’t expect them to get a sudden attack of ethics.
As for the cause, this is almost certainly a result of a complex of environmental factors. Nutrition is almost certainly a principle one – here the obescity question ight be misleading, it is more likely to be the input and whereas you child excercises a great deal to burn off the extra calories she eats now compared to those you had, others are becoming obese through lack of exercise.
Environmental oestrogen exposure is probably also a factor. While you have identified insecticides and growth hormones in agriculture, there could be other sources. A principal one is where water is purified for domestic use by extraction from rivers downstream from similar plants. In a cycle where water is extracted, treated, distributed and waste water treated before being returned to the river, there are an awful lot of women on birth control pills peeing. Some river systems have been accumulating an artificial hormone load sufficient to affect the sexes of fish species sensitive to them. This is also thought to be one cause of a reduction in male fertility.
Soya beans are another source of oestrogen-like compounds. A study reported by the BBC this week recommends that soya and soya products should be avoided by women wanting to become pregnant. The mechanism is slightly different from ordinary birth control pills as the effect is to make a more hostile environment for sperm. On the other hand, much more soya is used today in foodstuffs and to feed animals that would have been the case before.
It is worth remininding ourselves that “childhood” (certainly for the length of time we currently recognise) is really a 19th century middle class construction. Even today in many of the poorer parts of the world, a child the age of your daughter would be contributing economically to the family. On the other hand you are dealing with a western situation in which she will not be considered “mature” for another 7 or 9 years.
Maybe the best thing would be to be honest and open. Maybe you could explore with her how advertising and commercial interests seek to sexualise the young. From what you have said, she seems like she should be fairly self-reliant and able to cope with what would seem to us to be difficult concepts at that age.
Excellent points all. I’ve often thought about the organic molecules that make it through water plants, but your line of women on birth control pills make me gasp and laugh on the same time.
We’re off to ride now- but I so appreciate your thoughts and information. Those are leads I’ll follow up on this afternoon.
Soy was the second thing I thought of. It’s the phyto-estrogens, and they have been linked, at least anecdotally, to early development in girls. The only appropriate use of soy is when it’s fermented, as it is in Asian cultures, because it breaks it down into digestible compounds. The other thing I’ve read about is the hormones in livestock. So, milk, chicken, beef, eggs, etc, that are produced by commercial agriculture, can contain high quantities of steroids and artificial hormones.
We are fortunate to have a good, mostly untainted, source for public water here, but early puberty and adult hormone issues are a common concern among my friends and coworkers. When my doctor told me the cause of my problems was fibroids he put me on birth control pills but told me it was only a short term fix and that I was to stop eating any soy and to never eat any animal product that wasn’t organic. Within a few months I was cured and off the pill. It’s been several years and still no problems. I’ve passed his advice to coworkers with some success, a few thought having a hysterectomy was easier. Might be helpful for early puberty too.
I could get real complicated here but it partially comes down to our food and water.
Bovine Growth Hormone for one. Estrogen in the water supply for two. Tetracyline as a feed supplement for three.
Now add: pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, fertilizers, growth promoters, lack of microbial activity in the soil, air pollution, improper disposal of industrial wastes, and etc.
We are conducting a long-range experiment on the human body without proper safeguards, control, or oversight. Just one of those things that makes life in the 21st Century so … interesting.
BTW, in Europe they are starting to find fertility reduction (lower sperm counts) in men and boys which seems to be linked to by-products of industrial production.
who got her period right before her tenth birthday have all entered puberty earlier than me and my sisters.
I was 14 before I got my period, I probably started to develope other signs around 12 or 13. I certainly didn’t have breasts before 13.
The other thing that seems to go along with early puberty is being shorter. It seems like normal growth stops or slows down significantly.
Anecdotal story…
I was a late-bloomer for my generation (late-80’s adolescent) and growing up in a rural area was exposed to a never-ending supply of agricultural pollutants. I was, however, a vegetarian and I refused to drink milk as a child – given that most factory-farmed animals are pumped full of hormones, it has always seemed logical for me to credit my early diet with my relatively late ..er.. blooming.
Hm. Interesting. I also “bloomed” late (13-14), and I can’t drink milk due to some nasty food allergies. Can’t eat any dairy, for that matter. Though I was a mid-90s adolescent. (Born in ’82).
Though the regulations about what chemicals and hormones are acceptable seem to be a lot tighter up here in Canada. We apparently don’t allow BGH, for example. (According to a quick Wikipedia check.)
I didn’t know that (BGH in Canada) – but it does make me feel better about grabbing cheese out the deli case in my grocery store (without extensive ingredient info). I buy mostly organic, mostly local food – but I’m not always that attentive to it, and usually follow my cravings.
My nascent patriotism is just growing in leaps and bounds these days….