# Size of the testicles, the Gold Standard **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 20, 2012, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319 "2012-10-20T11:33:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2012, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319/1 "2012-10-20T11:33:34Z")
Just had to point out that the a [front page article](http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/20/health/puberty-starting-earlier-in-boys-new-study-suggests.html?hp) of today’s New York Times quotes a professional woman saying: > [@](#): > > …the gold standard: the size of the testicles. What’s the world coming to? 😉 ETA: I just noticed that the same article also quotes another professional woman named Lolita. Shocking. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2012, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319/2 "2012-10-20T11:55:06Z")
Most folks I know about my age 64 thought of puperty as when hair started to show on face, underarms, pubic area etc. I have never heard of measuring the testacles as a guage back then. It may very well be more accurate as to when puperty actually starst but I doubt the validity of a comparison. Looking back I know the hair started growing around 12 and the urges started happening around 10 but were not all that recognizable. ---
**Author:** ![LabRat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/898d66/32.png) [@LabRat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LabRat)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2012, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319/3 "2012-10-20T12:29:52Z")
Puberty’s earliest sign happens with something totally non-sexual. When their feet start to grow out of all proportion, hold on to your hat. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2012, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319/4 "2012-10-20T12:31:19Z")
HoneyBadgerDC, I agree. I think most experts see it as a transitional PERIOD which takes several years (with various milestones along the way), while the public perception seems to be more that it’s a sudden event, as shown by the phrase “to hit puberty”. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2012, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319/5 "2012-10-20T12:33:33Z")
> [@LabRat](#): > > Puberty’s earliest sign happens with something totally non-sexual. When their feet start to grow out of all proportion, hold on to your hat. There’s a whole porn industry dedicated to the contrary – that feet ARE sexual. ;). (Or so I’ve been told.) ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2012, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319/6 "2012-10-20T13:00:46Z")
I wonder if growth spurts are related to puberty, I went through a growth spurt at just about that age. ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2012, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319/7 "2012-10-20T13:03:53Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > I wonder if growth spurts are related to puberty, I went through a growth spurt at just about that age. Growth spurt of the testicles? ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2012, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319/8 "2012-10-20T16:35:12Z")
> [@wolfman](#): > > Growth spurt of the testicles? No, physical size. This seemed to be the age where the boys got taller than the girls, 6th and 7 grade ususally if I remember right. The pubes might have experienced a frowth spurt there as well. ---
**Author:** ![LabRat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/898d66/32.png) [@LabRat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LabRat)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2012, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319/9 "2012-10-20T17:03:19Z")
Frowth spurt? Methinks thine auto-correct hath outed thee as a ren-fest attendee. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2012, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319/10 "2012-10-20T17:50:47Z")
spurt snortle ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2012, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319/11 "2012-10-20T17:57:09Z")
Is it just me, or does this thread seem chock-full of double entendres to anyone else? ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2012, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319/12 "2012-10-20T18:03:41Z")
Puberty starts when boys start to show some spunk. ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2012, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319/13 "2012-10-20T18:19:00Z")
Female, no sons, no brothers. I was under the impression that the big marker for male puberty was the voice. ---
**Author:** ![LabRat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/898d66/32.png) [@LabRat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LabRat)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2012, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319/14 "2012-10-20T21:30:30Z")
The voice is a very late marker. Before that there’ll be aching legs, really sore nipples, rages and sweats. I’m male. ---
**Author:** ![Tamex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@Tamex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamex)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2012, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/size-of-the-testicles-the-gold-standard/638319/15 "2012-10-20T22:09:16Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > No, physical size. This seemed to be the age where the boys got taller than the girls, 6th and 7 grade ususally if I remember right. The pubes might have experienced a frowth spurt there as well. I remember the girls getting their growth spurts first, so they were taller than the boys in 6th and 7th grade. The boys got theirs later, and were taller than the girls by about 9th grade.