Scientists are unable to identify the reason why the average age for puberty in girls has dropped five years in the last century, with girls now as young as five years old showing signs of maturity.

Fox News is reporting that research conducted on thousands of girls in the UK found that they were maturing significantly earlier than girls in previous studies. The average age of the onset of puberty in girls is now 10 years.

Tabitha Randell, a British pediatrician, said she witnessed the case of a four year-old girl who began developing body hair and body odor.

In the U.S., 15 percent of girls begin puberty by age seven, with one in 10 beginning to develop breasts by that age. Among black girls, 23 percent hit puberty by age 7.

The age of menstruation hasn’t declined quite as rapidly as the age of breast development, but it has also been dropping steadily. Currently, the average girl starts menstruating at 12.4 years. By contrast, girls in the mid-19th century began menstruating around the age of 16 or 17. By 1950, that age dropped to 14.6 and since then it has been dropping at an alarmingly high rate of a few months for every passing decade.

Scientists are unsure about the cause(s) of this worrying hormonal trend but say obesity could be one of the culprits. A 2010 study published in the U.S. journal Pediatrics, found that among seven and eight year-old girls studied, those with a higher body mass index were more likely to reach puberty early. This is because body fat is linked to the production of sex hormones.

Stress, such as that caused by family breakdown, is another trigger of early puberty because prolonged stress is known to alter hormones.

Environmental chemicals are also considered to be a cause. Chemicals such as pesticides, flame retardants, and even perfume are known to interfere with the hormone system. A water supply contaminated with pharmaceutical drugs and prescription hormones such as birth control pills and growth hormones from farm animals is also highly suspect.

Premature birth is another possible cause. According to Sandra Steingraber, author of a 2007 report on early puberty for the Breast Cancer Fund, rates of premature births have jumped 18 percent since 1990. Babies born early or very small for their gestational age tend to experience “catch up growth” which can lead to obesity.

Scientists are concerned about the trend toward earlier puberty because it not only shortens the childhood experience of girls, it also poses significant physical risks. For instance, early puberty has been found to increase a girl’s risk of depression, drinking, drug use, eating disorders and suicide attempts. Much of this is because their physical maturity outpaces their emotional growth, forcing them to grow up before they have the mental and emotional capacity to do so.

Equally worrisome is the fact that girls who begin to menstruate early face a higher risk of breast and uterine cancers, likely because they’re exposed to cancer-causing estrogen for a longer period of time. 

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