I have noticed an alarming trend concerning the upbringing or development of young girls. That is, there is a purposeful effort to prematurely induce puberty in girls. I cannot speak to this from a point of understanding as I simply do not understand why a parent would want to abuse a child in this manner, so I can only speculate. What I do know is that it is not natural and causes harm to these girls.
There are parents who live vicariously through their children, pushing them to excel in academics, sports or achieve fame or popularity where the parents, themselves, failed. These parents need to step back and let their children have their own life. Similarly, especially in split families, parents may tend to focus more on being a friend to their child rather than a parent by not wanting to be seen as the "mean one".
This is not an indictment of single mothers, but I have observed that I see this most often in this demographic. Young girls lack the discipline and controls in a female headed household that are more often in place in a male headed household. This can have significant consequences for these young girls including juvenile delinquency, poor school performance, self-destructive behaviours and pregnancy.
The "best friend" mothers may also, regardless of intention, try to develop these girls prematurely which can have severe or longterm psychological problems. The problem is greater than this and much more widespread though.
No single demographic is responsible for this alarming trend though. It is done by mother and fathers, rich and poor, married or single. I will present some statistics, causes, harms and potential remedies for premature puberty in girls.
Many parents consider the late pre-teen or early teen years to be the normal time for the onset of puberty. They may be shocked to learn that revised guidelines for pediatricians indicate a much earlier time to be normal. Girls who start to develop breasts and pubic hair at age six or seven are not necessarily "abnormal" [fn1]. In fact, by their ninth birthday, 48% of African American girls and 15% of white girls are showing clear signs of puberty.
Many young girls in early elementary school are developing breasts and pubic hair and are too young to understand the emotional mood swings and other symptoms of adolescence. In addition, the long-term health implications for cancer and other diseases are unknown, but there is reason to be concerned.
A study by Marcia Herman-Giddens, DrPH, and her colleagues at University of North Carolina School of Public Health examined more than 17,000 girls between the ages of three and 12 who were patients in more than 200 pediatricians’ offices across the country.
Results found that in their seventh year, 27% of African-American girls and 7% of white girls had begun breast development and/or had pubic hair. Between ages eight and nine, those numbers had increased to 48% of African-American girls and 15% of white girls. Also at age eight, 17% of African-American girls and 2% of white girls had axillary hair.
Menarche occurred in the girls’ eleventh year for 28% of African-American girls and 13% of white girls. At age 12, 62% of African-American girls and 35% of white girls had begun menstruating. For white girls in the US, the age of first menstruation has remained stable over the past 45 years. In African-American girls, age at menarche has declined by about 6 months in the past 20 to 30 years. The authors felt that the change in age at menarche in African-American girls may be due to their coming closer to achieving optimal nutritional and health status.
The mean onset age for breast development was 8.9 years for African-American girls and 10.0 for white girls. Pubic hair onset began at age 8.8 for African-American girls and 10.5 for white girls. Axillary hair appeared at the average age of 10.1 in African-American girls and 11.8 in white girls. All of the characteristics emerged significantly earlier in African-American girls both with and without controlling for height and weight.
We know that puberty is occurring earlier but more importantly we need to know what is the potential harm. Girls who begin puberty sooner than normal experience an early growth spurt resulting in an initial height disparity. But because their bones stop growing after puberty, they never reach their full height potential. Early estrogen production leads to an increased risk of breast cancer because breast tissue is exposed to the hormone for a longer period of time. Girls who get their period before age 8 are also at greater risk for polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), a condition in which cysts grow in the ovaries and can interfere with fertility.
In addition to potential physical harms are the social and psychological issues that these girls may face.
Maturing young girls will have to cope with their own confusing sexual feelings as well as the impact that their maturing appearance has on boys and men. Studies of young girls indicate that those who develop early are more likely to be depressed, aggressive, socially withdrawn, and moody [fn2]. Studies of teens indicate that girls who developed early are more likely to be sexually active, have more problems in school, and are more likely to smoke and use alcohol and drugs [fn3].
To begin remedying this problem it is necessary to know the causes and what steps can be taken to undo these.
Diet seems to be the main environmental influence on early puberty. The rate of obesity in American children ages 2 to 11 has nearly tripled over the last few decades [fn4]. Fat cells can trigger puberty. They produce estrogen, as well as the hormone leptin, which can stimulate the release of the hormones that trigger puberty. Girls who are overweight also produce excess insulin which can stimulate the ovaries and adrenal glands to release more sex hormones. A 2003 study found that nearly 60 percent of girls with precocious puberty were overweight [fn5].
Researchers are also looking to another environmental factor being the wide use of plastic, especially in food and beverage containers. Many plastics including those used in baby bottles, water bottles and as a coating in food and beverage cans contain Bisphenol A (BPA). BPA is a chemical used to make plastics more flexible. Scientists are concerned about BPA's behavioral effects on fetuses, infants, and children because it can affect the prostate gland, mammary gland, and lead to early puberty in girls. BPA mimics and interferes with the action of estrogen. It leaches out of plastic into liquids and foods, especially when the plastic is heated. The CDC found measurable amounts of BPA in the bodies of more than 90 percent of the U.S. population studied.
Scientist believe that chemicals which mimic hormones, called endocrine disrupting compounds, or EDCs, which include BPA, along with pesticides, compounds in cigarettes, and phthalates - an aroma stabilizer in lotions and shampoos - are partially to blame for this phenomena. However, the U.S. government does not currently test chemicals for their effects on human hormonal systems even though many girls are exposed to them every day. The European Union is only just starting to do testing and regulating.
There is one overwhelming factor that is now starting to receive more attention because the harm being done is outweighing the political and financial benefits of ignoring the problem and cause.
Divorce is now becoming a leading theory for early maturation in girls. It’s been documented that girls not living with a biological father tend to mature earlier. A study by a University of Arizona researcher and a colleague offers some insight on a phenomenon affecting girls who grow up in homes minus their biological fathers, and why they tend to go through puberty at an earlier age than their peers in intact families.
Professor Bruce J. Ellis, the John and Doris Norton Endowed Chair in Fathers, Parenting and Families at the UA Norton School of Family and Consumer Sciences, and Jacqueline M. Tither at the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, New Zealand, published their study in the journal Developmental Psychology.
The study was conducted using sisters of significant age differences from both intact and divorced families. The researches tried to use sisters whose parents divorced when one was still young while the other was older. This allowed for them to see if there was a causal effect of the father's absence on the development of the younger sister. "Our study showed that more exposure to father absence was linked to earlier puberty," Ellis said.
He continued, "The idea is that children adjust their development to match the environments in which they live. In the world in which humans evolved, dangerous or unstable home environments meant a shorter lifespan, and going into puberty earlier in this context increased chances of surviving, reproducing and passing on your genes."
It is not enough to simply have the presence of a father in the home. It is critical that the father have an active positive relationship with his daughter's. Additionally, a replacement father figure may actually speed up the maturation process.
Girls living in step-families are almost twice as likely to reach early puberty as girls from non-divorced homes. While only 18per cent of girls from intact homes started menstruating by 11 or younger, this applied to 25 per cent of girls in divorce homes and 35 per cent in step-families.
These are the findings of psychologist Mavis Hetherington and co-author John Kelly who published their results in the book For Better or For Worse. The study examined 1400 families covering nearly three decades.
They theorize this may result from the fact that in many animal species, the presence of a strange male is an environmental cue that induces sexual readiness in young females. Children have evolved to naturally avoid sexual relations with siblings and parents. Hence early menarche may be triggered by the presence of a ``strange male" in the household as these girls bodies prepare themselves for sexual relations with the step-father.
The critical time for exposure to the "strange male" seems to be the first five to seven years of life, when the pathways to puberty are set down. Dr Ellis speculates that an environmentally triggered process shunts the girl towards a particular reproductive strategy. This process may be influenced by male pheromones secreted by the body. The pheromones of unrelated males apparently accelerate puberty development while the scent of the biological father may delay maturation.
Research has consistently shown that girls from divorced families are sexually active at a younger age, have a greater number of partners and are at greater risk of early pregnancy. Adolescent psychologist Michael Carr-Greg is intrigued by the Ellis's research. ``It does gel with what I have observed in families. I think it has huge implications," Dr Carr-Gregg says.
Other theories include stress, such as that coming from a divorce, is a factor that causes early onset of puberty in girls. However, Dr Ellis's research shows no impact on the timing of puberty from stressful relationships in intact families, but finds that conflict between parents in the step-family does contribute to early maturation.
For David Blankenhorn, author of Fatherless America, the message from the Ellis's and Hetherington's data is clear: ``If we want young girls to delay sex and childbearing, having a loving biological father on the premises is a good idea, while having unrelated men on the premises is not."
So what can you do?
The simplest remedies may lie in what you can change today. Larry Kushi, associate director of research at Kaiser Permanente, points to data suggesting that girls with relatively low-fat, high-fiber diets tend to develop later. The benefits of proper diet help boys and girls in many ways. No parent should be exposing their children to HFCS, artificial food colours and flavorings or plastic food containers which contain BPA.
It’s difficult to control chemical exposures in the U.S., because the government (unlike Denmark’s) does not require chemical ingredients to be labeled in personal care products as it does in food. However, there are easy steps that can be taken to limit exposure. These include avoiding personal care products that contain fragrances.
Girls should also play sports and get regular exercise. The is evidence that physical exercise reduces mental fatigue and stress. Additionally maintaining proper weight is important. Parents should always be limiting pre-packaged or fast food meals for children to two per week and less for those who are already overweight.
What seems to have been demonstrated to have the greatest impact for pre-pubescent girls is the presence of a biological father in the household. Women who give birth to girls without ensuring the presence of a nurturing biological father in the home are inflicting harm upon their daughters. The most abusive are those who seek to reduce the involvement of the father through divorce and seeking to have sole physical custody of the children.
Notes
1] Kaplowitz, et al., 1999
2] Sonis, et al., 1985
3] Phinney, et al., 1990; Ge, et al., 1996; Graber, et al., 1997
4] CDC
5] Davison et al.
Some material in this article was collected from Bettina Arndt, Diana Zuckerman Ph.D., and Jeff Harrison
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1 comment:
The main reason is divorce and children losing their natural father.
The term "Biological Father" was recently created by feminists to degrade the importance of fathers.
Always use the scientific term "Natural Father" and "Natural Parent".
In biology and other real sciences, the term 'natural parent' is used. Only in sociology and feminist circles they use 'biological parent'.
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