Studies investigate the potential causes of Early Puberty
There's a time in the life of boys and girls when changes are taking place, more gradual for boys, almost sudden for girls, which introduce them to Puberty, the transition phase to adulthood. Studies in the last century, have highlighted an intriguing phenomenon, a steady decrease in the age during which puberty's changes are taking place. In some cases, with really curious consequences, as the ones happened at the Copenhagen Royal Chapel Choir, that became object of a brilliant Research.
The Royal Chapel Choir in Copenhagen is composed of young sopranos' voices educated at the Sankt Annae's Gymnasium since 1924. It has an historical tradition. In December 2003, a quite strange phenomenon was reported by the Director of the Choir, Abbe Munk, on an article of a renown Danish Journal. He mentioned that he could register an earlier puberty in children that seemed to affect the sopranos' voices required by the Choir he was directing. The earlier puberty was modifying the quality of the children's voices. The sopranos he expected to hear, because of the age of children, were becoming tenors.
The News captured the attention of a brilliant Endocrinologist, Dr Anders Juul, who contacted with his team the Sankt Annae Gymnasium to establish a collaboration with the objective of understanding the causes of the earlier puberty occurred in the children composing the Choir.
The boys usually are admitted into the Choir at a pre-puberal age, when they are 8 years old. At that time, they have a light voice which they educate and prepare for singing in the Choir. In the last ten years, though, they registered pubertal changes in the voices of children occurring at least six months earlier than expected. The Choir, has been composed usually of children at twelve to fourteen years of age, but because of the earlier pubertal changes in their voices, it is now composed of younger boys.
The endocrinologist Lise Aksglaede reported that they analyzed the boys every six months with blood, genetic tests and urinalyses to see when puberty is actually taking place. For better understanding what has been happening, it may help going back in history at the time of Johann Sebastian Bach. At that time, the pubertal changes in the voice of boys occurred roughly at eighteen years of age.
The girls are similarly affected by pubertal changes occurring earlier respect to the past. From the second half of the 18th century to the second half of the 19th century, the average age of girls at their first menstruation, in Northern Europe and USA, decreased from seventeen to fourteen. Today, girls can have pubertal changes even at only eight years of age, while boys, before the nine years of age.
The major problem with the early puberty changes is that boys and girls reach sexual maturity much earlier than their psychological and mental maturity, necessary to protect themselves from life experiences. In general, the early changes in puberty are attributed to the improved quality of life of our days: the lower number of infections and diseases, the major availability of food everywhere, etc. But early puberty, though, is reaching an unexpected toll today. In the studies, an association has been made with obesity and resistance to insulin. Both the phenomenons could be contributing factors to the early changes occurring in boys and girls, lately.
However, they are working on another hypothesis that considers the influence of the environment and lifestyle, the kind of food we eat and the chemical and industrial substances we are exposed to. It's hypothesized that some of these substances may act like hormones inducing the early changes we see in boys and girls today.
The Danish Research, not yet definitive, indicates, as major responsible of the early puberty changes, the Phtalates, components of plastic material that can be found everywhere, in toys of children, in the paintings, in pacifiers and in objects made of PVC, etc. The Phtalates may interfere with the endocrine system and be responsible of the early puberty changes observed. Toxic effects have already been observed by them in experiments on lab animals.
In conclusion, according to what has been found so far, bad lifestyle habits and the presence of Phtalates in the environment can both contribute to the Early Puberty observed Today.
Nature had provided boys and girls a better timing for matching the physical changes with the mental and psychological ones, but unfortunately, with our inconsiderate abuse of Mother Earth, we are causing changes not only in our environment but also in the most precious treasure we have, our children, our own Future. One more reason to reflect and reconsider our future plans of development.
To watch the Video on RAI 1 TV, go to: http://www.rai.tv/dl/RaiTV/programmi/media/ContentItem-22b31637-3368-4010-96d2-6c98d384519b.html
It's the second documentary in the Video played during the TV program Superquark, presented by Piero Angela
To know more, you may want to visit also: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Wellness/girls-hitting-puberty-early-age-study-suggests/story?id=11345321&page=2
I personally heard for the first time talking about the phenomenon of Early Puberty Today, during the programs on TBN TV by Dr. John McDougall
The Royal Chapel Choir in Copenhagen is composed of young sopranos' voices educated at the Sankt Annae's Gymnasium since 1924. It has an historical tradition. In December 2003, a quite strange phenomenon was reported by the Director of the Choir, Abbe Munk, on an article of a renown Danish Journal. He mentioned that he could register an earlier puberty in children that seemed to affect the sopranos' voices required by the Choir he was directing. The earlier puberty was modifying the quality of the children's voices. The sopranos he expected to hear, because of the age of children, were becoming tenors.
The News captured the attention of a brilliant Endocrinologist, Dr Anders Juul, who contacted with his team the Sankt Annae Gymnasium to establish a collaboration with the objective of understanding the causes of the earlier puberty occurred in the children composing the Choir.
The boys usually are admitted into the Choir at a pre-puberal age, when they are 8 years old. At that time, they have a light voice which they educate and prepare for singing in the Choir. In the last ten years, though, they registered pubertal changes in the voices of children occurring at least six months earlier than expected. The Choir, has been composed usually of children at twelve to fourteen years of age, but because of the earlier pubertal changes in their voices, it is now composed of younger boys.
The endocrinologist Lise Aksglaede reported that they analyzed the boys every six months with blood, genetic tests and urinalyses to see when puberty is actually taking place. For better understanding what has been happening, it may help going back in history at the time of Johann Sebastian Bach. At that time, the pubertal changes in the voice of boys occurred roughly at eighteen years of age.
The girls are similarly affected by pubertal changes occurring earlier respect to the past. From the second half of the 18th century to the second half of the 19th century, the average age of girls at their first menstruation, in Northern Europe and USA, decreased from seventeen to fourteen. Today, girls can have pubertal changes even at only eight years of age, while boys, before the nine years of age.
The major problem with the early puberty changes is that boys and girls reach sexual maturity much earlier than their psychological and mental maturity, necessary to protect themselves from life experiences. In general, the early changes in puberty are attributed to the improved quality of life of our days: the lower number of infections and diseases, the major availability of food everywhere, etc. But early puberty, though, is reaching an unexpected toll today. In the studies, an association has been made with obesity and resistance to insulin. Both the phenomenons could be contributing factors to the early changes occurring in boys and girls, lately.
However, they are working on another hypothesis that considers the influence of the environment and lifestyle, the kind of food we eat and the chemical and industrial substances we are exposed to. It's hypothesized that some of these substances may act like hormones inducing the early changes we see in boys and girls today.
The Danish Research, not yet definitive, indicates, as major responsible of the early puberty changes, the Phtalates, components of plastic material that can be found everywhere, in toys of children, in the paintings, in pacifiers and in objects made of PVC, etc. The Phtalates may interfere with the endocrine system and be responsible of the early puberty changes observed. Toxic effects have already been observed by them in experiments on lab animals.
In conclusion, according to what has been found so far, bad lifestyle habits and the presence of Phtalates in the environment can both contribute to the Early Puberty observed Today.
Nature had provided boys and girls a better timing for matching the physical changes with the mental and psychological ones, but unfortunately, with our inconsiderate abuse of Mother Earth, we are causing changes not only in our environment but also in the most precious treasure we have, our children, our own Future. One more reason to reflect and reconsider our future plans of development.
To watch the Video on RAI 1 TV, go to: http://www.rai.tv/dl/RaiTV/programmi/media/ContentItem-22b31637-3368-4010-96d2-6c98d384519b.html
It's the second documentary in the Video played during the TV program Superquark, presented by Piero Angela
To know more, you may want to visit also: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Wellness/girls-hitting-puberty-early-age-study-suggests/story?id=11345321&page=2
I personally heard for the first time talking about the phenomenon of Early Puberty Today, during the programs on TBN TV by Dr. John McDougall
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