Early Puberty Hits Girls Hardest, Triggering Sexual Development in Children

Early puberty triggers the early development of sexual characteristics in children and disproportionately affects girls. Gabby started menstruating and developing body hair at age six. Her mother, worried about what was happening to her first child, took her to a doctor.

Gabby, who lives in England, told the BBC World Service: The pediatric team had to do research because they had never heard of anything like what I was going through. They had to contact other hospitals across the country to learn more about treatment options. Now 26, Gabby was diagnosed with central precocious puberty (CPP), a condition in which puberty begins before age eight in girls and before age nine in boys.

Estimates of the number of people with this condition vary significantly between countries. Girls are more likely to be affected. Globally, the number of new cases each year ranges from 0.2 to 26 per 10,000 girls and from 0.02 to 0.9 per 10,000 boys.