Puberty/food Question Wrapped into One...

I would back the others that said watch milk and milk products and soy as much if not more than meat. I raise my own chickens to avoid some of this, but not everyone can. There are ways to get non-hormone treated foods it just takes more effort (sometimes more money). But, the others are also right that it is as often genetic, and socially related to conditions. Mammals will overbreed if there is ample food supplies and we humans are just moderately intelligent mammals.

Why not buy your meat from a local farm, where you're assured that hormones/antibiotics have not been used?
Age of puberty is more determined by genetics than anything, but there is also a connection to soy that most people don't realize. Soy should only be consumed in a fermented form. Since soy is marketed to vegetarians as a protein source (and in many baby formulas!), I would suggest doing more research on the subject. I started at age 10....

According to a dr... girls start puberty at about 80 pounds and have their first period at 100 pounds.

I dont think there is any way to do a controlled study of meat/dairy intake and early puberty.. so what ever data is out there is heresay..

There is just no way to take a child and feed them a controlled diet every day of their life to see if it effects puberty timing.

I say let your kids eat everything and anything in moderation.

Have you had their iron levels checked??? where are they getting iron from? red meat is the best source of iron.

I was also an early bloomer in the 80's, also when I was 9. My mother was the same way in the 50's and my eldest aswell (she is 13 now and still mad at me about being the 1st in her class 4.5 yrs ago). What I have learned is it is genetics more so than anything else. Also we are more open to talking about it than years ago. My middle daughter is 8 and I think it will be within the next 18months for her and then again it may not. My sister was 10 when she started and that is late in our family but early in DH's.

You cannot control when your child will go through puberty.
Scientist have studied this for years and there have not been any verified theories.

Each person has their own hereditary histories, they have social situations and then it is just biological.

I am almost 50 and I remember very distinctly, my mother and my elementary school, spoke with us about our bodies maturing and getting ready for our menstrual cycles in the third grade. I think they did this way back then, because even then they knew some girls had bodies that matured early and they needed to give all of us a heads up.

There have been studies with so many results, it makes sense that there can be many theories. In the 60's and 70's they said it was due to mothers working out side of the home and young girls having to take over mom duties(Oy vey!)

In the 70's and 80's they said it was girls in households where divorced mothers had multiple boyfriends.. (again notice they did not mention divorced dads with lots of girlfriends),

Then in the 90's they said it was hormones in the meats and milk , which now has been proven to not be Totally true. (Your child would have to drink a dairy case per day for the rest of their lives for this to occur).

And now in the 2000's they are saying it is due to childhood obesity..

What makes the most sense is that every child is different with all sorts of variables. As parents if our goal is to make sure our children eat a healthy variety, are active with lots of play, and stable house holds, they will be as healthy as we can make them and yet there are things we cannot control. Biological hereditary.

So what we need to do is always educate our daughters. Be honest about and not ashamed about the truth. Use the real language, so that they will have a heads up.

http://www.livescience.com/health/070904_bad_puberty.html

Here is an interesting article.
http://www.livescience.com/health/070904_bad_puberty.html

I haven't read a whole lot about this subject, but common sense seems to indicate, given the concentrations of hormones in meat, there is probably a similar higher-than-normal concentration in the water supply.

Here's an article about the subject, though I know nothing about the author or the article's reliability/lack of bias. http://open.salon.com/blog/dr_ayala/2010/06/21/early_pube... I thought this from the article interesting: >>The age at which girls started getting their periods has been dropping by a few months every decade, and western European girls, who started menstruating on average at the age of 16-17 in the 1840’s are now getting their periods at around age 12-13. But as a matter of fact this trend has been leveling-off in the past 30 years.<<

It'll be interesting to read the responses you get to your question. Hopefully, just trying to keep that ever-elusive "balance" in life will preclude any inadvertent problems concerning puberty.

If mammals have plentiful food supplies, the birth rate increases. My eldest is due tp begin this year according to her doctor. The main thing is to make sure that they are educated on what to expect and how to behave. You can't stop it or delay it. My girls both understand that a menestral cycle is just part of being a mammal.

I was an early bloomer and you cannot control when your child goes into puberty. I also know that although you try to eliminate things at home you have not been a lunch lady yet? (maybe yes, maybe no). These kids trade all sorts of food in school! So try as you might you may not control all sorts of things. But we try, we really do.

Humans are omnivores. I believe it is possible to be a healthy vegetarian as an adult but I am not a fan of vegetarian children. Even with adults, doctors recommend to vegetarians who are severely injured or burned to go back to eating meat until they are healed. It speeds the healing process. As omnivores, there is a balance of meat and plants that is correct for our physiology.

For your children, if you are concerned about hormones and antibiotics in meat, just spend the extra couple of dollars and buy organic meat with no chemicals used. That's a better alternative than banning meat in an effort to delay puberty (which probably isn't going to work anyway).

I don't think it's hormones in food so much as it is just more food in general. My Mom was a late bloomer, but then she was as skinny as a rail up until her mid 20's (we have a picture of her in her early 20's with a 17" waist - no kidding, she was malnourished and on the verge of starving for the whole for her childhood). They didn't have fast foods back then. Butter and meat were rationed during WWII. Some of her grade school teachers use to sneak her an extra milk for lunch because she always used to look like she was on death's door step. Even when I was growing up - there were no snacks between meals. If you were hungry and it was the right season, you climbed the apple tree and ate green apples, and you quickly learned how many you could eat before they made you sick. What is so plentiful now is sugar, fat, salt, caffeine - mostly empty calories with little vitamin content.
So to answer your question, I don't think it's the food per say, but the amount of food available. You don't want to starve your kids, but over feeding them is no kindness either. Keep them active. Turn off the TV and computer. Make sure their food choices are healthy. Puberty will come when it comes.

Genetics definitely play a role. You're most likely to get your period at a similar age as your mother and grandmother. However, there has been a trend of girls entering puberty earlier in recent decades.

The FDA announced last week that they're requiring the use of agricultural antibiotics to be reduced to help preserve their effectiveness in the human population. The more bacteria are exposed to antibiotics, the more the are able to produce superbugs that are resistant to the medications. There have been no new antibiotics on the market in the US for several years. The most recent, Ketek, was removed a few years ago.

Unfortunately, the sources most of us receive our information is suspect. I asked a question recently about organic products and was referred to Food, Inc. by almost everyone. While I believe there's some factual information in the film, it's a politically charged movie with a motive and may be slanted away from all truth.

Ask your pediatrician or OB/GYN what the current scientific and medical data show regarding the link between use of hormones in livestock has on puberty.

Here's what the American Academy of Pediatrics has on their parenting website about early puberty:
http://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/grades...

I could find NO recent studies (later than 1999 publication date) on the subject via Google.com/Scholar

I do believe that genetics play a role as well.

However, I've questioned the quality of food now days too. We farm so we eat our own hamburger and drink our own milk. We KNOW that they are safe because WE know what does and does not go into them! And we also purchase 95% of our fruits and vegetables ORGANIC. I figure it can't hurt and just may HELP! I want to protect our family to the best of my ability. All those pesticides CAN"T be good for us.....

Another thought I've wondered is if all the additives that they put in vaccines cause some of the early puberty, fertility problems, and other issues as well???? I have NO idea! But the thought has crossed my mind. HOW can they know what is all safe (especially with the cocktail and sheer NUMBER they recommend these days)...............

My 12 yr old daughter went to the dr recently becuz of stomach trouble. (It was ibs). During examination, her dr asked questions and one of them was has she started her period yet. She said no. Then he said that when she gets to my height that's when her period might start. I never heard of it I'm 5 ft. 2 in. and her height is about where my shoulder is. She's a good eater loves cold veggies like cucumbers she weighs 82 lbs and is active with swimming & softball. I was two months before my 13th birthday when I had mine. We have a friend whose daughter started her period at age 9 and her dr told her mom that it was caused by the preservatives in the foods. In some way I think genetics play the role and the foods you eat is part of it. I bought an American Girl "The Care & Keeping of You - The Body Book for Girls". I recommend this book to everyone who has a daughter ages 9-14. Wonderful book!

I personally don't think you can control it. I don't have a lot of evidence to back up my theory other than personal experience. My dad comes from a family of 10, 5 girls and 5 boys. Most of the females started between the age of 10 to 13 except one. She didn't start until she was 16. They freaked out and ran millions of test on her because she was the abnormal one. I remember this well, as she is only 6 years older than me. None of the diets were different and they ate whatever was available. Normally eggs, cows meat and such.
I was between 12 and 14 years old. I don't remember exactly. We too didn't have any special diet.
My cousin started a year or two earlier than me. They were a much healthier family than mine. We were the same age, I just remember her going through the "start" shortly after my aunt did.

In my conclusion, diet doesn't help or hurt. Do what you feel is healthiest for your family but still educate them and assume that it is more genetic based than environmental based.

One thing you should not do is substitute soy for everything because synthetic estrogen is derived from soy and that will just exacerbate your problem. I read an article in Men's Health magazine about soy's potential for feminizing males too.

Biology is destiny. Your child's genetic makeup is what it is and if you matured early in life chances are she may too. I worry about you being so paranoid about her diet. You do not want to make her feel like something is "wrong" with her.

She needs whole milk for bones and brains but you can find BGH free milk. Harris Teeter carries it if you have them near you. Ask your butcher if he has any certified organic meats.

Have you talked to your pediatrician?