Contrary to the conventional wisdom, most girls who start developing a year or two before their classmates don't face any more long-term problems than their peers.
Contrary to the conventional wisdom, most girls who start developing a year or two before their classmates don't face any more long-term problems than their peers. However, depression may be somewhat more likely among such girls.
Earlier research suggests early-maturing girls are more likely to engage in numerous high-risk behaviours such as sexual activity, substance abuse, minor criminal activity, and clashes with authority figures. It was thought that this behaviour persisted into young adulthood.
To investigate if girls who reach puberty earlier are at a higher risk of behavior and health problems, researchers used data from the Great Smoky Mountain Study, U. S., a long-term study of more than a thousand city and rural boys and girls in North Carolina. The girls enrolled in the study were followed from age 9 to 21. Of the 630 girls enrolled, 115, or about one in five, were defined as early-maturers. The study was based on regular surveys of the subjects and their parents.
While the research reinforced the belief that early-maturing girls have more problems in adolescence, it also found little evidence of continued problems into young adulthood. In fact, the discrepancies between the early and on-time maturing girls disappeared for two reasons: early-maturers gradually reduced risky behaviors, while their on-time peers increased theirs. Depression in young adulthood was the only exception and showed a stubborn persistence in one small group of early-maturers.
Compared to all study participants, early-maturers were 3 times more likely to be depressed as young adults: Fifteen percent of early-maturers suffered depression in young adulthood, compared to five percent of girls who matured on time or late. The effect was particularly pronounced in a small group of early-maturers. More than 80 percent of the early-maturing girls reporting a history of behaviour problems were depressed at 21, compared to nine percent of those without histories of misbehaviour.
The above findings show that early puberty holds few long term dangers for girls.
Earlier research suggests early-maturing girls are more likely to engage in numerous high-risk behaviours such as sexual activity, substance abuse, minor criminal activity, and clashes with authority figures. It was thought that this behaviour persisted into young adulthood.
To investigate if girls who reach puberty earlier are at a higher risk of behavior and health problems, researchers used data from the Great Smoky Mountain Study, U. S., a long-term study of more than a thousand city and rural boys and girls in North Carolina. The girls enrolled in the study were followed from age 9 to 21. Of the 630 girls enrolled, 115, or about one in five, were defined as early-maturers. The study was based on regular surveys of the subjects and their parents.
While the research reinforced the belief that early-maturing girls have more problems in adolescence, it also found little evidence of continued problems into young adulthood. In fact, the discrepancies between the early and on-time maturing girls disappeared for two reasons: early-maturers gradually reduced risky behaviors, while their on-time peers increased theirs. Depression in young adulthood was the only exception and showed a stubborn persistence in one small group of early-maturers.
Compared to all study participants, early-maturers were 3 times more likely to be depressed as young adults: Fifteen percent of early-maturers suffered depression in young adulthood, compared to five percent of girls who matured on time or late. The effect was particularly pronounced in a small group of early-maturers. More than 80 percent of the early-maturing girls reporting a history of behaviour problems were depressed at 21, compared to nine percent of those without histories of misbehaviour.
The above findings show that early puberty holds few long term dangers for girls.
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