Why Girls Are Hitting Puberty Early?

Causes and ways to deal with problems associated with these changes.

- Sudha Hariharan

As per the National Institute of Health, girls experience the onset of puberty between the ages of 8 and 13 years, whereas boys typically experience this in the age group of 9 to 14 years.

However, these days at least 8 out of 10 girls are attaining puberty at the age of 7 and 8 years.

Puberty-a biological transformation that not only switches on the reproductive organs but also drives changes in sleep cycles, facial structure, voice, fat distribution, body hair, and height-can be a pretty rough ride for anyone.

The main reasons for the girls attaining puberty earlier can be attributed to sedentary lifestyle, lack of physical activities, and consumption of junk food. Now, girls are entering puberty about a year earlier than they did back in the 1970s according to global data on breast development.

The age of breast development - which represents the first clinical sign of female puberty - has declined an average three months per decade between 1977 and 2013, according to analysis of data combined from 30 different studies.

Early menstrual bleeding - the last clinical sign of puberty for women - is associated with a higher risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and allergies.

Three leading gynaecologists Dr. Suhasini Inamdar, (Motherhood Hospitals, Bangalore), Dr Gayathri D Kamath, (Fortis Hospitals, Bangalore) and Dr. Asha Dalal (Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital) enlighten us on this topic.

Does puberty start sooner now?

There may be a decline in the typical age at which boys and girls enter puberty. As it is, the menarche, a girl's first menstrual period, signals the beginning of female puberty.

The first period can come on later in puberty and may not be a reliable indicator of the beginning of puberty.