A new study published by The Journal of Pediatrics is suggesting that girls are experiencing signs of puberty at an alarmingly younger age then they once were.  The study states that a new wave of children is showing signs of puberty as young as 7 years old.   The study shows that the onset of puberty through breast development occurred in 25% of African American girls, 15% of Latina girls and more than 10% of white girls by age 7.

I cannot even imagine!

I got my period on the very first day of 7^th grade.  I was 12.   Of all colors to be wearing, I had on white denim shorts.  I was lucky that the evidence didn’t appear until my best friend and I were riding our bikes home from school.   When she pointed out a red stain stating, “I think you got your period!”  I was completely mortified.  And I was twelve.  Already knowing about these things.  Imagine the mortification of a 7,8, or 9 year old?  Unfathomable.

I will never forget the girl whose locker was two down from mine in middle school.  Her period made its first appearance during history class by leaving behind a pear-shaped stain on the back of her jeans.  It stayed there all day.  Classmates pointed and laughed.  For months people fastened maxi pads to her locker and handed her tampons in the hallway.  The boys at school left mocking notes calling her ‘PMS girl’ (uh, so creative)  in the slats of her locker. It took the entire year for this poor girl to live it down.

At 12, menstruating was a big deal for all the girls I knew.  I remember the emotions that went along with having boobs and pimples.  I clearly recall my hormonal obsession with the boy who sat across from me in my algebra class and the terribly moody mean streak I developed — or maybe always had, just never realized.

I can’t even begin to fathom how stressful it must be on little 7 and 8 year-old girls to have breasts, for God’s sake.  It seems like an unfair burden for a little person who is still watching cartoons and playing with baby dolls.  Most seven year-old girls I know aren’t even aware of what sex is, let alone menstruation.

And naturally, doctors and specialists are trying to figure out what the deal is.  Some point to the raise in childhood obesity, while others believe environmental issues are to blame.  Some point to chemicals like BPA, found in baby and drinking bottles.  There have been links to hormones in dairy and meat products that could also be leading to the onset of early puberty.   Sadly it is believed that early puberty, or precocious puberty, as it is commonly called in the medical community, increases the risk of breast cancer, so there’s much more to worry about here than just lots of little women running around, ripe for ovulation.  Literally.

Personally?  Whatever the ‘true’ cause and risks may be, I feel the need to start eating entirely organically — lest my daughter hit puberty in less than two years.

In her song,”Pull Over,” Trina raps:

Who got more ass than the average bitch?
You know it’s the baddest bitch
Number ten in the face, slim in the waist
Fat in the ass, do you want a taste?

Though Trina was likely referring to herself, scientists have come one step closer to identifying who got more ass than the average bitch. Researchers have recently identified two genes that predict the age at which girls start getting their period. And wouldn’t you know it, the genes are located next to the height and weight genes. Girls who are short and squat tend to get their periods earlier. Sing it, sister.

But while bodacious breastaculars and bubble butts may be all the rage in rap, early onset of puberty is linked with a host of problems later on in life, including breast cancer and osteoporosis. Early developers are apparently also at risk for other, more immediate problems.  Says a researcher:

“Girls maturing earlier are more likely to become depressed, delinquent, aggressive, socially withdrawn, suffer sleep problems drinking, smoking, drug abuse, lower self-esteem and suicide attempts.

They’re also more likely to exhibit poor academic performance in high school than on-time or later maturing peers.”

That makes sense to me. Where I went to school, the girls who developed earlier were cooler and more popular than the rest of us late developers. They drank and smoked pot in Rob’s parents’ basement, while the rest of us prepubescent nerds studied for AP Bio. Who’s laughing now?