Effects of Premature Puberty

A school dance.
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Puberty can be difficult at any age, but when a young
child is faced with monumental changes, it can cause psychological stress.

What happens when a girl grows breasts and sprouts body hair before she's even graduated from elementary school? She can become confused about the changes in her body and embarrassed when other children tease her about being different.

Little girls are not ready to handle the emotional changes that come with puberty. As a result, studies have found that girls who have undergone precocious puberty are more likely to have psychological problems, unintended pregnancies and substance-abuse problems than their peers [sources: Kaplowitz and Barnes].

Early puberty can also have a big effect on the body. Girls who begin puberty sooner than normal experience an early growth spurt and are taller than their peers at first. But because their bones stop growing after puberty, they never reach their full height potential. There is also an increased risk of breast cancer with early puberty, because estrogen production starts sooner and 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.

Going through puberty a few years before everyone else can be hard on a girl. Fortunately, the process often reverses itself, and if it doesn't, treatments are available to put a halt to puberty until it's the right time for it to begin.

5-Year-Old Mother
Could a girl become a mother at age 5? It sounds incredible, but according to published reports, it's true. Lina Medina of Peru had her first period when she was only 8 months old, and on May 14, 1939, she became the youngest known mother in history when she delivered a 5-pound, 8-ounce (2.49 kilogram) boy. The child was named Gerardo, and he didn't learn Lina was his mother until he was 10 years old. As for the baby's father, no one knows for sure who he was. Lina's own father was initially arrested on suspicion of rape and incest, but he was later released for lack of evidence [source: Snopes].

­Treatme­nt begins with a specialist in growth and hormonal disorders, called a pediatric endocrinologist. The doctor will do a thorough exam that includes hormone tests and possibly brain imaging scans to check for tumors or other abnormalities.

How precocious puberty is treated depends on its cause. If a medical condition is causing the problem, it will be treated with medication or surgery. When there isn't any medical cause, the doctor may prescribe LHRH or GnRH agonist therapy. These man-made hormones block the body's production of the sex hormones that lead to early puberty. Often the medicines are given as a monthly injection. The child will stay on medication until she reaches the normal age for puberty.