Emily McAuliffe is the little girl who hit puberty at four years old.
According to the National Institutes of Health, puberty usually begins in girls between 8 and 13 years of age, and in boys between 9 and 14 years of age. Puberty is considered to be early in boys before age 8 and girls before 9 years old.
The average age for girls to start puberty is 11, while for boys the average age is 12. But it's perfectly normal for puberty to begin at any point between the ages of 8 and 13 in girls and 9 and 14 in boys.
In boys, peripheral precocious puberty also might be caused by: A tumor in the cells that make sperm or in the cells that make testosterone. A rare genetic condition called gonadotropin-independent familial sexual precocity. This can cause boys, usually between ages 1 and 4, to make testosterone too early.
Hormonal basis
It is normal for production of these hormones to increase (something we call adrenarche) and for pubic hair to appear after age 8 in girls or 9 in boys. The reason why this increase occurs earlier in some children is not known.
Similarly, some girls and boys may have early growth of pubic and/or underarm hair or body odor that isn't related to other changes in sexual development. This is called premature adrenarche (ah-druh-NAR-kee). These kids may need to see their doctor to rule out "true" precocious puberty.
Premature pubarche, or the development of pubic hair before the age of 8 in girls or 9 in boys, is most commonly caused by premature adrenarche. Adrenarche is the maturation of the adrenal zona reticularis in both boys and girls, resulting in the development of pubic hair, axillary hair, and adult apocrine body odor.
—Public hair developing before age 1 year is rare and to our knowledge, development of pubic hair before age 6 months has not been previously reported. We describe our experience with three infant girls who developed pubic hair within the first year of life.
Puberty lasts 2 to 5 years for both boys and girls. Boys tend to start puberty around a year later than girls. This means that boys may be shorter than girls of a similar age for 1 to 2 years.
Puberty is the body's natural process of sexual maturation. Puberty's trigger lies in a small part of the brain called the hypothalamus, a gland that secretes gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH).
African-American and Hispanic girls tend to reach puberty earlier than their white counterparts, research shows.
Studies show that puberty is starting earlier and has dropped about three months each decade since the 1970s. Based on this newer starting age for puberty, girls in the U.S. are most likely to get their period around 12 years old.
Most girls get their first period when they're between 10 and 15 years old. The average age is 12, but every girl's body has its own schedule.
Once it begins, it lasts about 2 to 5 years. But every child is different. And there is a wide range of what is normal. Your child may begin puberty a little earlier or later and finish sooner or later than their friends.
Boys tend to show the first physical changes of puberty between the ages of 10 and 16. They tend to grow most quickly between ages 12 and 15. The growth spurt of boys is, on average, about 2 years later than that of girls. By age 16, most boys have stopped growing, but their muscles will continue to develop.
Children's natural curiosity about their bodies
At a very young age, children begin to explore their bodies. They may touch, poke, pull or rub their body parts, including their genitals.
Pubic hair – Once her pubic hair starts growing, you can expect her period to develop in one to two years. It may begin soft and thin but it will become courser and thicker towards the end of puberty.
These early physical changes are not caused by a disorder, and only a few children go on to develop actual precocious puberty. Early pubic hair development occurs because the adrenal gland increases the level of androgens it produces.
What can I do to become taller? Taking good care of yourself — eating well, exercising regularly, and getting plenty of rest — is the best way to stay healthy and help your body reach its natural potential. There's no magic pill for increasing height. In fact, your genes are the major determinant of how tall you'll be.
Myth: menarche means the end of growth is near
Follow-up data from the Fels Longitudinal Study show that girls who start menstruating at age 10 grow, on average, 10 cm (4 inches), while those in whom menarche is delayed until age 15 grow, on average, 5 cm (2 inches).
Toddlers are naturally curious about exploring their whole bodies, including their genitals. Here's how to handle this normal stage of development. When your little one starts touching herself, don't worry, stress or get embarrassed.
A breast bud is a lump that develops under the nipple in the first stage of breast growth. The lump may be tender and sore, but it is completely normal in girls undergoing puberty. However, if your child is under eight years old and developing breast buds, she may be experiencing precocious puberty.
Breast buds are normal, small disc-shaped rubbery lumps felt under the nipple. Age: they normally occur in 8 to 12 year old girls. They are the first sign of puberty.