Age of puberty going down for girls
The average age of thelarche has fallen three months every decade since the 1970s, say Danish researchers
The average age at which girls reach puberty has decreased nearly three months every decade since 1977, according to a new study.
The findings from a systematic review and meta-analysis suggest the cut-off age for precocious puberty, which currently sits at eight years old, may need to be revised, say the Danish authors.
The University of Copenhagen researchers identified 30 studies on age at thelarche, or development of Tanner breast stage 2, in healthy girls published between 1977 and 2013.
Most of the girls in the studies were in the normal BMI range.
