puberty questions (girls)

[Anonymous]

My DD started to get pubic hair and breast buds at the age of 8 going on to 9, but she was a little bigger than the kids in her grade , but she was getting healthier and smaller too. Anyway, she did not start her period until she turned 12 and she was just starting 6th grade. So is it normal for a girl to have had taken four years after getting pubic hair to getting her period?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If poeple would stop feeding their daughters beef and milk from hormone suplimented cows they would probalby not be entering puberty at such young ages.

Organic milk and beef, and non-sedentry lifestyle go a long way in allowing girls to be girls instead of staring mensus at 9 or 10. Body fat has a lot to do with when girls start puberty.

I agree, my DD started puberty early because she drank dairy and ate a lot of beef. Now she is. 13 and is eating organic foods and no cows( which she tells me she is happy about) and only getting dairy once in a while. She is very healthy, and I have heard that cutting dairy from your lifestyle helps your period go with ease, and she has reported that ever since she has not had dairy she does not get cramps or other pains during her time of the month. Her first two periods she was still drinking dairy and she would get severe cramps and now she doesn't really notice any signs. There are many other ways of getting what you need from dairy or beef in other less fattening ways. I can even say now that I have gotten rid of the junk food in my house I can run without collapsing and my daughter has twice the energy she had before and at her last doctor checkup they said even though she was healthy before, they can notice that she is healthier.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

If poeple would stop feeding their daughters beef and milk from hormone suplimented cows they would probalby not be entering puberty at such young ages.

Organic milk and beef, and non-sedentry lifestyle go a long way in allowing girls to be girls instead of staring mensus at 9 or 10. Body fat has a lot to do with when girls start puberty.

OP here. Not that I owe you an explanation, but we do drink organic milk, consume very little red meat, and eat tons of organic (and, in the summer, home-grown) fruits and vegetables. My daughter is very active in dance & running track, and she's in the 15th percentile for weight but 75th for height. She's a beanpole. If you saw her, I can assure you the word "obesity" would not spring to mind. At the pool this past weekend, watching her run around in a swimsuit, I turned and asked my husband "do you think other people think we don't feed her enough?" because honestly we do! Her pediatrician has no concerns about her weight or the health of her diet.

But thank you for reading my heartfelt questions and concern for my daughter and finding a way to blame me for causing early puberty. Nice.

Also, I don't believe there is clear evidence that hormones in milk are causing early puberty. It seems to be more rumor than fact, but if anyone has reliable studies to share, I would love to read them, but for those who aren't using organic milk & meats, I don't think you should worry that you're harming your daughters.

Everybody has a different body type , anyway now a days we can never be sure what triggers early puberty because of the portion sizes served here and the way this country is . I am about to go into college, and I have no experience with kids, but from my personal experience beef and milk really didn't help me as a child. I haven't heard anything about milk hermones causing puberty early. But , for me the amount of milk I would intake at age 9 and beef around me 24/7 probably started my puberty early because I was a few punds over weight. As I was heading for middle school, my eating habits changed, and I started to eat organic. The only thing I can say about organic vs.non organic is when I ate organic I felt more alive and I wasn't such a moppet in school, I relies that my story probably has nothing to do with your daughter so I will get to the point, I think it really depends on the type of person you are or a type of body you have because I can definitely tell you and you can probably guess that my body cant handle dairy and red meat. And for why your daughter has hit puberty(even though I am not a place to say anything) it is quite common for younger girls to go through puberty for different reasons, and it sounds like your daughter is a very healthy girl so I would not worry about anything.

[Anonymous]

Study from earlier this month:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/health/article7148975.ece

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think my DD is developing breast buds. I noticed a little something yesterday, only on one side - it just looked darker and not completely flat like the other side. She doesn't seem to have noticed it yet b/c she's the kind of kid who would have pointed it out to me if she did.

She's in 4th grade and will be 10 in ~2 months. I thought we had lots more time for her just to be a little girl! I am so sad this is happening already. She is just a little kid, uninhibited about walking around the house naked, wants to get in the bathtub with her 5-yr old brother, etc. She knows the basics of reproduction but there's a lot she doesn't know, so I plan to start talking about things in more detail with her now.

I didn't get my period until I was 14 so I assumed she would start around the same time. I know puberty is a long process and this is just the beginning, but I would hate for her to start getting her period in elementary school - I was in high school when I started mine and it seems like too much for a 5th-grader to deal with. She doesn't have any pubic hair, thank goodness - she is way too little to be shaving her legs or underarms! I know there's nothing I can do to slow things down, but I want her to get to be a little girl for as long as possible.

Just wondering from anyone who has been through this with their own DD, is she likely to get her period in the next year or so? I honestly don't remember any timeframes for myself except for how old I was when I got my period.

By 5th grade I started my period and was in a size C cup bra! My mother didn't start her period until she was 16. I was 11 when I started my period and had a size C cup. I was larger than my mom in that dept also. My girls have all started around the age 10/11. They are either in a size C or D cup. They are thin or average sized girls. {size 0 to size 5} Our youngest is very sweet, naive, etc and it KILLED me when she started her period and grew breasts.

[Anonymous]

I'm glad I found this post...my daughter recently turned 10 and a few of her friends had breast buds and suddenly I noticed she has them too! I was shocked! I didnt have my period until I was 15, but my Mom was 12/13 as was my sister so Im guessing she is on track..Im just a bit heartbroken that she is turning into a young woman already...time flew!
we eat organic...she does lots of sports....is normal sized and her friends vary from thin to heavier...alot of them have buds (the Moms were discussing)....hoping she can avoid having a period until she is at least 12.....but glad to see others feel the same....
so sad to see them grow up....but exciting too, esp. for her...

[Anonymous]

My daughter started getting pubic hair when she was 10 and had the beginnings of breast buds at her 11 year check up. She started shaving under her arms & her legs when she was 11 (6th grade). But she didn't have her first period until she was 13 1/2. She's very tall & thin - maybe that has something to do with it? - but it seems to me there's not any one timetable.

[Anonymous]

Found these for my DD before her first period started (just so she'd be prepared) and bought one. Now that my second DD is 12, I've picked up another one to have on hand for her. They call them "first period kits" and they come with a carrying case for supplies, and "everything a girl needs for her first period". My DD said she was really glad she had it and I should definitely get one for her sister when the time came. www.dotgirlproducts.com Both girls also really liked the Care and Keeping of Me book that's been mentioned. I bought them each a copy and we read through some parts together, talked a lot, and they have come to me with questions, as they've come up.

[Anonymous]

My sister and I both got our periods later than our mom and her sisters (who all got it around 12) but earlier than the women on my dad's side of the family (his mother and sister didn't start until they were 14 or 15). We were sort of the average of the two sides of the family.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

OP -- absolutely not meant to be critical to you personally, but your story is a good example of why we do need to intervene and make sure our girls are filled in with the basics before they learn them on their own or, God forbid, get their period early before they know what it is.

I agree. I was not expecting her to enter puberty so young and I thought I had lots more time, but I have been doing some research on how typical this is, and apparently the average age for girls to start puberty now is 9 yrs 10 months, which is EXACTLY my DD's age (and seems shockingly young to be the norm, but it is).

The good news is that once you notice the very early stages of puberty, like hair growth and breast buds, typically it's about 2 more yrs until they start their periods, so there is time to give them the information they need in a series of smaller, more manageable conversations over a year or more.

I do think it's a real challenge, though, for mothers to have to introduce this information to such young girls. It's unclear why, but girls' bodies are maturing at younger and younger ages, even though socially and emotionally they are still children. I'm not sure my DD was ready for the information I gave her last night, but her body is dictating otherwise, and I would never want to leave her ill-informed, scared, or embarrassed about the changes she's experiencing.

I once read somewhere that this may have something to do with growth hormones in milk. I can't remember where I read this. . .

[Anonymous]

I think there's WAY too much emphasis on growth hormones in milk, and it's a good way to make mom's feel guilty (as if they don't have enough to feel guilty about). My DD was born allergic to milk and drank organic soy her whole life. We have never eaten anything but 100% organic and are strict vegetarians (so there goes the hormones in beef theory, too). She got her period at 11. Barely 11. I was 14 when I got mine. Milk-swilling, happy, go lucky 14. So please, stop telling people it's all in the milk they're feeding their babies. When my daughter was an infant I was made to feel guilty because I wasn't giving her enough milk, now I'm reading posts telling moms they should feel guilty for giving their children milk and forcing them to mature too early. Forget it. It's passed down. Maybe your grandmother matured early, or your mother did--or his grandmother did, or his mother did. It's just the way it is. No blame.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think there's WAY too much emphasis on growth hormones in milk, and it's a good way to make mom's feel guilty (as if they don't have enough to feel guilty about). My DD was born allergic to milk and drank organic soy her whole life. We have never eaten anything but 100% organic and are strict vegetarians (so there goes the hormones in beef theory, too). She got her period at 11. Barely 11. I was 14 when I got mine. Milk-swilling, happy, go lucky 14. So please, stop telling people it's all in the milk they're feeding their babies. When my daughter was an infant I was made to feel guilty because I wasn't giving her enough milk, now I'm reading posts telling moms they should feel guilty for giving their children milk and forcing them to mature too early. Forget it. It's passed down. Maybe your grandmother matured early, or your mother did--or his grandmother did, or his mother did. It's just the way it is. No blame.

This is good advice. I want to add that our mothers did not put us under microscopes the way we do our children. I probably had breast buds at 9 and some underarm hair but didn't get my period until almost 14. I think this is normal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think there's WAY too much emphasis on growth hormones in milk, and it's a good way to make mom's feel guilty (as if they don't have enough to feel guilty about). My DD was born allergic to milk and drank organic soy her whole life. We have never eaten anything but 100% organic and are strict vegetarians (so there goes the hormones in beef theory, too). She got her period at 11. Barely 11. I was 14 when I got mine. Milk-swilling, happy, go lucky 14. So please, stop telling people it's all in the milk they're feeding their babies. When my daughter was an infant I was made to feel guilty because I wasn't giving her enough milk, now I'm reading posts telling moms they should feel guilty for giving their children milk and forcing them to mature too early. Forget it. It's passed down. Maybe your grandmother matured early, or your mother did--or his grandmother did, or his mother did. It's just the way it is. No blame.

Thank you. My DD loves milk and I feel bad whenever we don't have organic.

[Anonymous]

Soy has estrogens as well.

[Anonymous]

Give it a rest.