Puberty at AGE 3?

A recent news break reported the story of a girl in the United Kingdom who started puberty at the age of three. (1) Parents noticed a change in the young girl’s body odor, followed by the appearance of breast buds and pubic hair. As her fourth birthday approached, the girl's parents noticed signs that she would soon begin to menstruate. Finally, at the age of six, the child received a diagnosis of precocious puberty.

Fifty years ago, the mean age of menarche (first menstruation) was between 14 and 16 years old. Today in the United States, one in seven caucasian females and one in two African American females will begin menstruating at age 8. These reports are astounding.

Scientists point to many potential causes of precocious puberty, including obesity and increased prevalence of sexual images in media. Stress is also cited as a factor as it causes fluctuations in normal hormone patterns, specifically growth hormone, cortisol, and melatonin. Researchers also theorize that changes in hormones may come from excess electromagnetic radiation due to increased use of electronics.

The largest body of evidence, however, comes from issues concerning hormones found in our environment. Meat, dairy, eggs, plastics, and contaminated water all contain compounds known as xenoestrogens (outside estrogens). These estrogenic chemicals promote precocious puberty and, later in life, an increased risk of breast cancer and prostate cancer.

Resources

1. Daily Mail

ALETRIS Center of Integrative Medicine is a Scottsdale, AZ wellness center serving Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, Phoenix, Glendale, Arrowhead, Peoria, Sun City, Chandler, Tempe, Ahwatukee, and Mesa, AZ with specialties in naturopathic medicine, natural hormone therapy, women's health, acupuncture, colon hydrotherapy, natural skincare and sugar hair removal.

The contents of this blog, including text, graphics, images and other material, are for informational and educational purposes only and are not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please seek the counsel of an ALETRIS physician or other qualified health provider with any questions regarding a medical condition or treatment.

Death by PLASTIC

Plastics are everywhere, and the ones that hold our food and water (water bottles, nalgenes, gallon jugs, tupperware, and ziplock bags), leach into our food and water. This leaching, called migration, has been regulated by the FDA, whose responsibility it is to ensure that only a safe amount of migration occurs.

Research has now shown that many of these chemicals not only cause cancer but also act as hormone disruptors.

After talking with patient after patient, the general consensus seems to be that softer plastics are more harmful to our health. Although it is a common misconception that hard plastics are safer, it is just not so. In the United States, plastic formulas are “proprietary,” meaning manufacturers do not have to tell the consumer the individual ingredients. Depending on the recipe, plastics may contain the most notorious plastic toxin, bisphenol-A. Bisphenol-A is a hormone disruptor that is implicated in infertility, benign prostatic hyperplasia, attention deficit disorder (ADD), prostate cancer, and low levels of testosterone.

Recently, a major Canadian retailer pulled all Nalgene and polycarbonate bottles from the shelf because these trendy, hard plastic bottles carry high levels of bisphenol-A. read the NY Times article

The lesson? No plastic is safe. Drinking water out of stainless steel water bottles or glass is the only solution.

Please visit ALETRIS links to find stainless steel water bottles and other natural solutions for healthy living.

ALETRIS Center of Integrative Medicine is a Scottsdale, AZ wellness center serving Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, Phoenix, Glendale, Arrowhead, Peoria, Sun City, Chandler, Tempe, Ahwatukee, and Mesa, AZ with specialties in naturopathic medicine, natural hormone therapy, women's health, acupuncture, colon hydrotherapy, natural skincare and sugar hair removal.

The contents of this blog, including text, graphics, images and other material, are for informational and educational purposes only and are not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please seek the counsel of an ALETRIS physician or other qualified health provider with any questions regarding a medical condition or treatment.