Overweight is associated with early puberty in boys and girls

It has been clear that overweight and obesity in childhood is associated with onset of puberty at a younger age in girls. For boys, this has been less clear and study results have been variable. One issue is that defining onset of puberty may be more difficult in boys compared with girls. In this volume of The Journal, Chen et al used data from the Boston Birth Cohort Study to evaluate this question. They used age at peak height velocity as a marker of puberty. They found that overweight or obesity from age 2-7 years is associated with earlier onset of puberty in boys as well as in girls.

Source: The Journal of Pediatrics - February 22, 2021 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Stephen R. Daniels Tags: The Editors' Perspectives Source Type: research