The Decline in the Age of Onset of Puberty – A Source of Concern

Puberty refers to physical transitions that occur in the body of adolescents, taking them from a stage of sexual immaturity to sexual maturity. Nowadays, it is being observed that more and more girls are attaining menarche at an age less than ten years, so the age of onset of Puberty being somewhere around 7.5 to 8 years. The reasons and implications are manifold. Early age of onset of puberty is a risk factor for ovarian and breast malignancies and also for a number of chronic diseases. The present article expresses author’s opinion regarding the issue on the basis of recent literature and tries to highlight the reasons responsible for this, especially in the current scenario and discusses modifiable factors so that the process can be halted.