Most parents will admit experiencing anxieties as their children approach normal puberty. However, while some parents prepare themselves to deal with the "growing up" issues, others are busy trying to deal with the problems of early puberty in their kids.

Christopher Burns

As challenging as early puberty can be for children, some people unfamiliar with the problems of early sexual development in children
use the physical manifestations associated with the condition to initiate sexual contact.

It is a banal practice in Jamaica, for example, for some adults and teenaged males as well, to refer to little girls who exhibit signs of early sexual development in equestrian terms such as "fillies". Women also refer to little boys as "studs", upon seeing impressions of their genitalia. It is unfortunate that what some find sexually appealing is symptomatic of very serious developmental abnormalities.

It is important, therefore, for parents to help their kids deal with these issues. By so doing, parents will also realise that parenting is more than satisfying the basic human needs of a child, but that it also requires some insights into the nuances associated with the processes affecting a child's physiological, biological, social and emotional development and general well-being. Furthermore, in today's world where children are affected by several genetic and congenital conditions that hitherto seemed non-existent, parents should also increase their understanding of these maladies. Two such maladies are testotoxicosis (in boys) and precocious puberty (in girls).

Normally, different glands in the body produce hormones which are naturally occurring chemicals that control many of the body's functions, including physical changes that occur in the pre-teen and teen years. Puberty is one such occurrence; puberty is the beginning of sexual maturity and is the period when a child changes physically, hormonally and sexually, and becomes able to reproduce. However, sometimes things do not work in tandem; as a result, some boys develop testotoxicosis and girls precocious puberty.

Therefore, these conditions should make it passé for some parents to continue to chase their pregnant daughters in "wrath and hot displeasure", or condemn them to doom on the uninformed premise of sheer worthlessness.

The truth is that research shows that early sexual development is responsible for a large percentage of early pregnancies in pre-teen and teenaged girls. Similar research identifies early sexual development in boys as a causal factor for the increased number of young parents, incidents of penetrative sex, and rape among pre-teen and teenaged boys.

Testotoxicosis (a form of precocious puberty) is a medical condition that causes puberty in very young boys, as early as two or three years old. Research done by Dr Marcia Herman-Gidden, University of North Carolina, shows that "boys are starting puberty earlier than previously believed and African American children are ahead of other racial groups". The research also states, "As early as eight years old, 38 per cent of the African American boys had started genital development. By age nine, 58 per cent of the African American boys had started genital development."

The body is naturally programmed to pace and regulate these changes. However, when these changes do not happen at the normal pace, as in boys who suffer from testotoxicosis, they give rise to a host of other problems. Boys with testotoxicosis may start developing facial, underarm and pubic hair, rapid development of the sexual organs, deepening of the voice, and their behaviour may become over-aggressive.

Boys in early puberty may be taller than other boys of similar age. However, many stop growing early and will not reach a height they may have attained if they did not have early puberty. This unusual early maturing causes serious difficulties for boys beyond the issues of aggressive behaviour and sexual desires; it also affects their self-esteem, their academic performance and overall social development. Researchers have discovered linkages between concentrated testosterone in skin creams and oils (China Brush and Stud 2000) used by some men for cosmetic and sexual purposes and elevated levels of testosterone in young boys.

Precocious puberty, though similar to testotoxicosis, is commonly used in reference to girls and describes the conditions in which they enter into sexual development too early. For girls, any signs of sexual development prior to age eight may indicate a problem. In the US, for example, girls are reaching puberty up to a year earlier than in previous generations; with some exhibiting sexual development as young as age three.

Girls in early puberty may experience breast growth, pubic or underarm hair, early menstruation, acne and adult body odour. Generally, girls who experience early sexual development and menstruation tend to begin dating early and are more likely to have sexual intercourse than their counterparts with normal sexual development and generally experience psychological stress.

Although the causes are largely unknown, underlying medical conditions like infections such as meningitis, hormone disorders and tumours may cause this condition.
Interestingly, recent research has found that hormone-mimicking chemicals found in certain food, water and many other consumer goods may well be a cause for the rapid changes in sexual development in children as young as eight years old.

Some researchers have also linked precocious puberty with factors of obesity, stress and the lack of post-natal care, especially the lack of breast-feeding. Whatever the underlying causes, parents and caregivers should think outside the box and work with medical experts when dealing with these issues.

burnscg@aol.com

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