Father absence and the introduction of a stepfather before menarche have been shown to contribute to the early onset of menarche. The present study analyzes the effects of father absence situations that tend to result on the onset of menarche. Presence of a related male in a father-absent homes is also considered as a protective factor for menarcheal onset. Participants consisted of 342 female students enrolled in undergraduate work at a southeastern university. The mean age of participants was 20.7 years. Participants completed a survey consisting of 12 questions pertaining to their family environment before menarche. Participants were asked to give their age at first menarche in years and months. Results indicted a significant difference in menarcheal age between those from homes where both biological parents were present and those where the biological father was absent before menarche. No other significant results were found. Implications for future research discussed.

Plusieurs études antérieures ont proposé que la ménarche pouvait représenter une vulnérabilité accrue au développement de la dépression en augmentant la réactivité au stress chez les filles ayant atteint leur cycle menstruel. Dans la présente étude, les symptômes dépressifs et les niveaux de cortisol salivaire ont été mesurés chez 198 garçons et 142 filles (11 - 13 ans), et ce, à quatre reprises au cours de leur première année de transition vers l’école secondaire, une période de stress chez les adolescents. Les résultats ont montré que les filles qui avaient atteint la ménarche au moment de la transition vers le secondaire avait des niveaux significativement plus élevés de symptômes dépressifs et de cortisol salivaire entre l’automne et le printemps, comparativement aux filles qui n'avaient pas encore atteint la ménarche. Ces dernières présentaient des niveaux plus élevés de symptômes dépressifs que les filles sans et les garçons. Les filles sans ménarche présentaient d’avantages des niveaux de symptômes dépressives plus élevés que les garçons. En utilisant l’âge de ménarche comme variable catégorique, les résultats démontrent que les filles ayant eu leur ménarche plus jeunes présentent des symptômes dépressifs plus élevés tout au long de l'année scolaire, alors que les filles qui ont commencé leur cycle menstruel à l’âge dit ‘normal’ présentent des symptômes dépressifs transitoires. Globalement, ces résultats suggèrent que la ménarche est un indice significatif d’une vulnérabilité accrue pour les symptômes dépressifs et les niveaux de cortisol plus élevés chez les adolescentes qui font leur entrée au secondaire. Également, ces résultats suggèrent qu’un âge précoce de ménarche peut exposer à long-terme le cerveau en développement à des niveaux élévés de cortisol, rendant ainsi ce groupe d’adolescentes plus vulnérables à la dépression. / It has been proposed that the onset and/or earlier age at menarche confer greater vulnerability to depressive symptoms by increasing the reactivity of menarcheal girls to stressors associated with adolescence. In the present study, we measured depressive symptoms and salivary cortisol levels in 198 boys and 142 girls (11 -13 years) tested four times during their first year of transition into high school, a period known to be associated with stress among adolescents. Results showed that girls who had reached menarche before the transition to high school transit presented significantly higher depressive symptoms and salivary cortisol levels across the school year, when compared to girls who had not reached menarche and boys. Girls who had reached menarche presented significantly higher depressive scores than girls who had not reached menarche and boys. Girls who did had not reached menarche also scored significantly higher on depressive symptoms when compared to boys. When we divided the menarcheal girls as a function of age of onset, we found that girls with early age at menarche presented consistently higher scores for depressive symptoms from the start of the school year to early spring. Girls with on-time menarche scored higher for symptoms of depression, but these were more transitory. Altogether, these results show that onset of menarche is associated with greater depressive symptoms and higher cortisol levels in adolescent girls going through the stress of high school transition. These findings also suggest that early menarche may confer greater vulnerability to depression due to long-term exposure of the developing brain to high cortisol levels.

Studies in the United States suggest that girls are developing secondary sexual characteristics at earlier ages than in previous years, with non-Hispanic black girls in the United States experiencing menarche at an earlier age when compared to their peers. Early puberty and menarche may have multiple detrimental effects, including reduced adult height, increased risk of breast cancer, obesity, and endometrial cancer. In this thesis, data from published sources of height and skeletal information on non-Hispanic blacks dating from 1763 to 1861 in the United States are compared with modern population data from 1988 to 1994. The expected result is that the modern population should be taller than the historic population. This held true for males, but not for females. The sexes differed from each other in each population group. This could suggest that female maturation is under greater genetic control than male, compensating for harsh living conditions. / Department of Anthropology

Using life-history theory within a biocultural perspective, this research explores whether household food insecurity correlates with early or delayed menarche among adolescent females in Tampa Bay, Florida. Early onset of puberty and menstruation is connected with numerous health consequences including growth stunting, obesity, type-2 diabetes, adult-onset asthma, reproductive cancers, increased risk for depression, behavioral problems, and early sexual activity which increases the risk for STIs and ovarian cancer. Early menarche also seems to disproportionally impact disadvantaged and minority groups. While there are many known factors that influence age at menarche (e.g.: genetics, diet), little is understood regarding the effect of food insecurity on menstrual timing. When considering food insecurity as an environmental adversity, long-term exposure may result in biological trade-offs within growth and development. Using a mixed-methods approach, 40 girls and 36 parents or guardians from Pinellas, Hillsborough, and Manatee counties participated in household dyadic interviews that included the assessment of household food security, girls’ dietary analysis, and anthropometry. Using quantitative analyses, the associations of diet, food security, and body size/composition to menarche were evaluated. A Cox hazards model and regression further analyzed the association of food insecurity and the timing of menarche. The research concludes that adolescents and their families are vulnerable to food insecurity for both biological and social reasons. Qualitative results examine the prevalence, experiences, and perpetrators of food insecurity, as well as strategies used by families to mitigate food insecurity. Food insecurity in this study refers to the inconsistent or limited access to adequate amounts of safe and nutritious foods to sustain health and wellbeing. Food insecurity does not necessarily result in hunger. Once can have access to enough calories and not feel hungry but may still be food insecure if their access does not include enough high-quality, nutritious foods. Quantitative analyses showed that iliac height, waist-hip ratio, snack consumption, and household food insecurity is associated with age at menarche among this sample. Spearman’s Rho confirms that height, leg length (p = 0.032, rs = 0.407), and snack consumption (p = 0.042, rs = 0.464) significantly positively correlate with age at menarche. Waist-hip ratio significantly negatively correlates with age at menarche (p = 0.032, rs = -0.518). Cox Hazard Regression analysis interprets that for every one unit increase in household food security survey score, the risk of experiencing menarche increases by 25% (p = 0.023, OR = 1.25). However, when adding leg length, waist-hip ratio, and snack consumption to the Cox Hazard Regression equation, no variables significantly predict menarche. These findings provide a better understanding of the biocultural influences within the timing of menarche. The research provides new insights and further stresses the importance of improving food assistance programs for adolescents and families with older children.

The purpose of this study was to compare the speaking fundamental frequency, physiological vocal range, singing voice quality, and self-perceptions of the singing and speaking voice between two groups of girls ages 11 through 15 years, who were pre-menarcheal by 6 months and post-menarcheal by 10 months or more. Subjects were volunteers who attended a North Texas public school system. Each subject was examined by an otolaryngologist. Age, height, weight, a hearing screening, and information on music classes and/or private music lessons were obtained. The speaking fundamental frequency measure was obtained by having each subject speak for 30 seconds on a subject of choice and read a passage of approximately 100 syllables. The vocal range measure was obtained by having each subject begin at an arbitrary pitch and sing mah and moo up the scale as high as possible and mah and moo down the scale as low as possible. These four measures were repeated with the researcher giving visual gestures. For singing-voice quality, each subject sang "America" in the key of her choice and again in the key of F major. Each subjects singing voice was rated according to breathiness. Data regarding self-perceptions of the singing and speaking voice were obtained through a rating assessment of 10 questions and a conversation with each subject. There were no significant differences between the means of the pre-meanarcheal and post-menarcheal girls on speaking fundamental frequency, physiological vocal range, and singing-voice quality. But, more of the post-menarcheal girls exhibited lower speaking pitches, lower singing ranges, and increased breathiness in their singing voices than did the pre-menarcheal girls. Two questions of the perceptions rating assessment were significant, with the post-menarcheal girls citing higher incidences of vocal inconsistencies than the pre-menarcheal girls. The findings of the qualitative data analysis indicated that more post-menarcheal girls had an adequate vocabulary to describe various aspects of their singing and speaking voices than did the pre-menarcheal girls.

Introduction: Sexually Transmitted Diseases, including HIV/AIDS, continue to be a major burden in the United States. Sexual partnering behaviors contribute to the spread of STDs. Sexual concurrency has been shown to exponentially increase STD prevalence in populations. Serial monogamy with short periods between sexual partners also introduces risk. Methods: We identified sexually active men and women from the 2006-2010 National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG) and used sub sets for each particular study. Sexual partnering was defined as being concurrent, serially monogamous or monogamous in the previous year. Polytomous logistic regression models were developed to evaluate the associations between age of sexual debut among adult men, age of menarche and discordant heterosexual identity and behavior among all women and sexual partnering patterns. Descriptive, mediation, subpopulation and stratified analyses were also conducted. Results: Sexual debut < 15 and 15-17 years was associated with concurrency (adjusted odds ratio (aOR)<15: 2.19; 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 1.36-3.55; aOR 15-17: 1.69; 95% CI: 1.04-2.75). This association was mediated by lifetime number of partners (further adjusted for lifetime partners: OR<15: 1.26; 95% CI: 0.74-2.22; OR15-17: 1.13; 95% CI: 0.67-1.92). Age of menarche was not associated with subsequent concurrent sexual partnering (adjusted odds ratio (aOR)early: 1.09; 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 0.57-2.09; aORaverage: 1.13; 95% CI: 0.64-1.99) or serial monogamy (aORearly: 0.75; 95% CI: 0.41-1.38; aORaverage: 0.71; 95% CI: 0.39-1.29). A subanalysis among currently unmarried women did not alter this relationship. Heterosexually discordant women who had both male and female partners in the previous year were 5.5 times as likely to report having a concurrent relationship (95% CI: 2.77-11.09) and 2.43 times as likely to report engaging in serially monogamous relationships (95% CI: 1.19-4.97) with their male partners than concordant women. Conclusions: Sexual partnering behaviors are potentially modifiable and reducing risky partnerships will contribute to a decrease in STD acquisition and transmission. Our findings have important implications. Clinically, they support the provision of comprehensive services, regardless of sexual identity. For policy, they confirm the need for early, inclusive and thorough sexual and reproductive health programming for our youth, in particular focusing on the benefits of lifetime partner reduction.

There is no common opinion, if the final height of female artistic gymnasts is jeopardized due to excessive training from early childhood. The aim of this master thesis is to compare a trend in human height of artistic gymnasts in three consecutive generations. Auxologic and related information were obtained from 49 elite artistic gymnasts via questionnaire. All were the members of national team. We figured out that artistic gymnasts are statistically smaller than their same-age peers. However, all of them have reached their genetically determined growth potential. The final height of artistic gymnasts across generations was increasing as well as the average female population. According to growth charts, constitutional delay is typical for artistic gymnasts. The age of menarche was statistically higher in the two youngest generations in comparison with the average age of their peers. According to our results, artistic gymnasts are not smaller due to excessive training from childhood, but on the grounds of genetic predisposition for small stature, which is favorable for this sport. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

Introduction Epidemiologic data supporting the role of organochlorine pesticides in pubertal development are limited. Methods Using a nested case-control design, serum collected during pregnancy from mothers of 218 girls who reported menarche before 11.5 years of age (cases) and 230 girls who reported menarche at or after 11.5 years of age (controls) was analyzed for 9 organochlorines and metabolites. We analyzed the association between in utero organochlorine concentrations and early menarche using multivariate logistic regression controlling for mother's age at menarche, or mother's prenatal BMI. Results We did not observe an association between in utero exposure to HCB, β-HCH, ϒ-HCH, p,p′-DDT, p,p′-DDE, oxychlordane or trans-nonachlor and early menarche. Conclusions This study is the first to examine the association between in utero exposure to HCB, β-HCH, ϒ-HCH, oxychlordane or trans-nonachlor and early menarche. In utero exposure to organochlorine pesticides does not appear to have a role in the timing of menarche in this study.

Thesis (M.A. (Human Movement Sciences))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2008.

No description available.