Pay attention to these during adolescence!

Information about puberty

Do you know how to treat your child during adolescence? You can build a good relationship with your child who is experiencing temporary but radical change, such as being more touchy and rebellious than ever before. Pediatric Endocrinology Specialist Dr. Aliye Sevil Sarıkaya gives important information about adolescence, read it carefully.

What are the signs of puberty?

The onset of puberty occurs between the ages of 9-12 for girls and between the ages of 10-13 for boys. Precocious puberty is the onset of puberty before 8 years of age in girls and 9 years of age in boys. The first symptom is unilateral or bilateral breast enlargement in girls. Later, hair growth begins in the genital area and armpit. Lastly, he sees menstruation. in men The first sign of puberty is an increase in testicular size. Subsequently, enlargement of the penis, in the genital area and under the seat hair growth, thickening of the voice is observed. Menstruation in girls and the start of sperm production in boys indicate the completion of puberty.

At what age does puberty begin?

The age of onset of puberty, genetic characteristics, nutrition status may change with obesity, stress and environmental factors. In recent years, the age of onset of puberty has decreased and the number of patients diagnosed with precocious puberty has increased due to changes in nutritional habits and socioeconomic enrichment all over the world. Precocious puberty is observed about 10 times more often in girls than boys. Although it is less common in boys, organic disorders that cause it are more common.

How is precocious puberty determined?

In order to detect possible underlying problems, it is absolutely necessary to investigate boys and girls whose development is accelerated compared to their peers and who have early puberty findings. Delay in diagnosis can be life threatening.

The biggest drawback of children entering puberty early is that it can cause short stature. Height growth accelerates during puberty. At the end of puberty, the female hormone estrogen, which is secreted in girls, and the male hormone testosterone, which is secreted in boys, cause the closure of growth cartilages. For this reason, when the growth cartilage of the child who is taller than his peers during adolescence stops, his height growth stops and his adult height remains short. Early puberty also affects the psychology of the child and can lead to psychosocial problems.

What causes precocious puberty?

Studies have shown that the increase in the problem of early puberty in recent years may also be caused by hormones and additives in foods. Chickens raised quickly by hormones, their eggs, grown fruits and vegetables can cause stimulation, initiating puberty. At the same time, chemicals in toys may show similar hormone-stimulating effects.

Can precocious puberty be stopped?

It is possible to stop puberty by suppressing the hormones that increase in early puberty with a needle made from the hip once a month. This treatment is applied in endocrinology centers. Treatment is continued until normal puberty. Following the discontinuation of the treatment, puberty begins by re-activating its own hormones. This treatment also prevents the epiphyses from closing prematurely and causing short stature.

Although it is possible to increase height by delaying puberty in early adolescence, studies have shown that there is no benefit in delaying puberty with treatment in adolescence that starts at a normal time.

Medicana Bahçelievler Hospital Pediatric Endocrinology Specialist Dr. We would like to thank Aliye Sevil Sarıkaya for the information she gave about the adolescence period.