# What's your favorite puberty manual for kids these days? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 20, 2014, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547 "2014-04-20T15:39:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/1 "2014-04-20T15:39:04Z")
It’s that time, for my 9 year old. She’s not there yet, still got her little girl body with no sign of budding, but I know it’s coming. While we’ve had ongoing talks all along about bodies and sex, she’s beginning to grok that this is more than just an academic subject and likely to become personal in the next few years. I’d like to get a book to accidentally leave laying around so she can absorb the information as quickly or slowly as she needs to. When I was her age, the bible of puberty books was _What’s Happening To My Body?_ I see that it’s still on the market, in a revised edition. Is it still good? Is it the _best_, in your humble opinion? _Taking Charge of Your Fertility_ is on the horizon, but that’s probably going to wait until she’s been menstruating for a couple of years. Right now I’m looking for things on breast development, body changes and how to handle periods. ---
**Author:** ![Chicken\_Fingers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Chicken\_Fingers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chicken_Fingers)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/2 "2014-04-20T17:37:26Z")
For my nine year old, I got _The Care and Keeping of You,_ books one and two. It’s a good place to start, and she seems to get a lot out of them. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/3 "2014-04-20T21:22:44Z")
When I asked this a few years ago for my niece and nephews I ended up getting the niece the recent revised edition of “Our Bodies, Ourselves”. Might be a bit more info than you wanted but maybe not. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/4 "2014-04-20T22:17:51Z")
Thanks for the suggestions! I’ve ordered _The Care and Keeping of You One_ and _Two_, as well as _It’s Perfectly Normal_ (which I’ll probably hang on to for another year or so in order to not overwhelm. That one has the Sex Stuff in it.) _Our Bodies, Ourselves_ is already on my shelf, although I should probably review it to see just how out of date the information in it is, and perhaps order a more recent revision. According to the Booklist review of _What’s happening to My Body?_, the for the newer edition “Madaras has made significant changes to reflect the younger age at which children are now reaching puberty. She has cut out the chapters about sex, birth control, pregnancy, and STDs, although she includes a rich appendix of resources on these topics. Mostly, the books concentrate on the physical changes that occur during puberty, with new chapters designed to serve as “owners manuals”…” So rather than being the one stop shop it used to be, it sounds like the same stuff is in _The Care and Keeping of You_, only with a more embarrassing to a nine-year old title. So I think I’m going to hold off on that one, at least until I’ve reviewed Care and Keeping and make sure it says what I want to teach her. Thanks again! ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/5 "2014-04-20T23:27:07Z")
You probably _don’t_ want [The Dirt on Sex](http://www.amazon.com/Dirt-Sex-The/dp/0800732979/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1398035810&sr=8-1&keywords=the+dirt+on+sex) by [Justin Lookadoo](http://www.lookadoo.com/Shop.htm). ( :eek: and/or :smack: ) Unless you plan to use it as prop for drinking games, apparently. For that purpose, reviewer M. Rundle on Amazon gives it 5 stars: > [@](#): > > This is an awesome book to play a drinking game with, and a horrible book to educate anyone on sex. > > Every time the author Justin Lookadoo says something sexist or writes an incorrect fact, take a shot. I promise that by page 7 you will be absolutely wasted out of your mind. > > There are so many gems in this book, I really don’t know where to begin. There’s the quiz “Should You Have Sex?” which completely disregards if you love or trust the person. Apparently the only way you can win this quiz is if you answer “yes” to being married for 10,000 points where all the other questions in the quiz are worth 1 point. Then there’s the amazing section “Are You Gay?” where Justin talks about “the gay doctors - you know the scientists who study homosexuality”, then as predicted he compares a woman’s virginity to a shiny car. As in - do you want to buy a shiny car? Or a banged-up used one? > > Anyway I digress. I give this book 5 stars because it not only provides great drinking games, but it can be used as kindling to start fires, or if you’ve run out of toilet paper. (Yes, I saw one his books with my very own eyes once. This guy is really that bad.) ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2014, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/6 "2014-04-20T23:31:08Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > You probably _don’t_ want [The Dirt on Sex](http://www.amazon.com/Dirt-Sex-The/dp/0800732979/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1398035810&sr=8-1&keywords=the+dirt+on+sex) by [Justin Lookadoo](http://www.lookadoo.com/Shop.htm). ( :eek: and/or :smack: ) > > Unless you plan to use it as prop for drinking games, apparently. > > For that purpose, reviewer M. Rundle on Amazon gives it 5 stars: > (Yes, I saw one his books with my very own eyes once. This guy is really that bad.) 😃 Maybe I should get that one for my 21 year old son, then! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/7 "2014-04-23T12:56:26Z")
> [@Chicken\_Fingers](#): > > For my nine year old, I got _The Care and Keeping of You,_ books one and two. It’s a good place to start, and she seems to get a lot out of them. They arrived yesterday. She’s not home until tomorrow, so I’ve been reading the first one and most of it is very good. There are a few things that I’m not in agreement with, but I decided to make lemons out of lemonade; I’m writing little notes on Post-Its and sticking them on the pages. Things like, “Ask me why I don’t like this paragraph very much! ~Mom”\* and, “There’s one more option besides tampons and pads - come ask me about the Moon Cup! ~Mom” and “Tampon applicators can NOT be flushed in Chicago’s old plumbing, even if they say “flushable”! Please wrap them in toilet paper and put them in the trash. ~Mom” Only about a half dozen notes were needed, so it’s really quite a good book. Hopefully these prompts will help her feel curious and comfortable coming to me for more information or with questions. Overall, great books! Thanks again! \*A paragraph implying that beautiful actresses are not “Real Women”, but your mom and teachers are. I understand the goal - to promote realistic beauty standards, but c’mon. We don’t need to bash the beautiful to make ourselves feel better. Jennifer Lawrence is a real woman, too. Hollywood doesn’t cast unreal women, just a too narrow selection of real women. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![ouryL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ouryl/32/6067_2.png) [@ouryL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ouryL)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/8 "2014-04-23T21:50:33Z")
I use to say, “Playboy.”🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/9 "2014-04-23T21:54:51Z")
A lot of pediatrician offices offer seminars on these issues for kids that age. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Little\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Pig)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/10 "2014-04-23T22:00:04Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > They arrived yesterday. She’s not home until tomorrow, so I’ve been reading the first one and most of it is very good. There are a few things that I’m not in agreement with, but I decided to make lemons out of lemonade; I’m writing little notes on Post-Its and sticking them on the pages. Things like, “Ask me why I don’t like this paragraph very much! ~Mom”\* and, “There’s one more option besides tampons and pads - come ask me about the Moon Cup! ~Mom” and “Tampon applicators can NOT be flushed in Chicago’s old plumbing, even if they say “flushable”! Please wrap them in toilet paper and put them in the trash. ~Mom” Only about a half dozen notes were needed, so it’s really quite a good book. > > Hopefully these prompts will help her feel curious and comfortable coming to me for more information or with questions. > > Overall, great books! Thanks again! Why don’t you come back in awhile and let us now how it went with the books you selected? ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/11 "2014-04-23T22:24:16Z")
I liked your idea of post its. Hopefully she receives them in a positive and not negative tone. 🙂 I do have a question. I knew about menstruation because my mom was not shy about hiding it when that happened to her, so I knew about what she went through (thankfully I do not go through her cramps and associated physical discomforts). I thought your daughter then would know quite a bit about it? At least that you used the moon cup? Or perhaps for once, my mom was progressive about such things (she’s conservative about others)? ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/12 "2014-04-23T22:38:14Z")
Unitarians use “Its Perfectly Normal” for sixth grade OWL. Its a little more sex and a little less puberty than is probably appropriate right now, but its a very good book that talks about (or at least mentions) all sorts of things she won’t get from public school (like anal sex and abortion and homosexuality). Moon Cups may be a little frightening to a nine year old who is probably built kind of small (I can’t wear them and I’m 47, sexually active, and have given birth - but I can’t do a tampon either). Another option is Party In Your Pants for the reusable pad if you are going for the lower environmental impact and she isn’t up for inserting something into her vagina. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2014, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/13 "2014-04-23T23:35:45Z")
> [@KarlGrenze](#): > > I do have a question. I knew about menstruation because my mom was not shy about hiding it when that happened to her, so I knew about what she went through (thankfully I do not go through her cramps and associated physical discomforts). > > I thought your daughter then would know quite a bit about it? At least that you used the moon cup? I was kind of flabbergasted that she asked “what’s a period?” myself. I distinctly remember us having several conversations about it in the past. Like _The Care and Keeping of You_, I used the “nest” metaphor to describe the uterine lining, and told her how if I had a baby, it would grow in that “nest”, but since I didn’t have a baby growing in my uterus, the “nest” slowly turned to liquid and fell out. She’s seen me change pads and sadly said, “Oh, but I want you to have a baby!” (NO!) I don’t think she’s ever seen me empty my Moon Cup; it can be a little scary looking if I end up with menstrual fluid on my fingers, so I do that when she’s not in the bathroom with me. She’s been leafing through _A Child Is Born_ since she could turn pages. She’s played with condoms and knows that “men wear these on their penis when they have sex, so that people don’t get germs from each other,” and that some people use them to have sex and not make babies, but that there are other better ways to do that. She certainly knows where babies come from, but I guess there are some dots that haven’t connected yet. I think maybe it was the word “period”? I guess it’s possible I haven’t used that _word_. Or maybe she just wasn’t ready to process the information in the past and so she immediately forgot all about it. This is why I’m not terribly concerned with exposing them to “adult information” too soon. What they’re not ready for, they usually don’t take in, or don’t remember. Sometimes psychological defense mechanisms are a good thing. This is why I don’t do one The Talk. Lots and lots of little talks, and sooner or later it all gets through. 🙂 > [@Dangerosa](#): > > Unitarians use “Its Perfectly Normal” for sixth grade OWL. Its a little more sex and a little less puberty than is probably appropriate right now, but its a very good book that talks about (or at least mentions) all sorts of things she won’t get from public school (like anal sex and abortion and homosexuality). Yeah, I told her I got it for when she’s ready for it in a year or two, but that there was no rush. Or if she feels ready now, she’s welcome to try it now. Or she can start now, decide it’s too boring, and read it later. Whatevs. I will leave that up to her. She’s on the couch reading the first _The Care and Keeping of You_ now. She leafed through to find all the Post-its first, but I asked her to read it and ask when she gets to each one, so she has the background information and we can talk about it. She’s already asked me to get a couple of other books listed on the back. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/14 "2014-04-24T01:08:44Z")
> [@Dangerosa](#): > > Another option is Party In Your Pants… [Party in My Pants](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNXxJrz9mqA) - Julie Brown parodying Madonna ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/15 "2014-04-24T01:13:34Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > I was kind of flabbergasted that she asked “what’s a period?” myself. I distinctly remember us having several conversations about it in the past. Like _The Care and Keeping of You_, I used the “nest” metaphor to describe the uterine lining, and told her how if I had a baby, it would grow in that “nest”, but since I didn’t have a baby growing in my uterus, the “nest” slowly turned to liquid and fell out. She’s seen me change pads and sadly said, “Oh, but I want you to have a baby!” (NO!) I don’t think she’s ever seen me empty my Moon Cup; it can be a little scary looking if I end up with menstrual fluid on my fingers, so I do that when she’s not in the bathroom with me. > > She’s been leafing through _A Child Is Born_ since she could turn pages. She’s played with condoms and knows that “men wear these on their penis when they have sex, so that people don’t get germs from each other,” and that some people use them to have sex and not make babies, but that there are other better ways to do that. She certainly knows where babies come from, but I guess there are some dots that haven’t connected yet. > > I think maybe it was the word “period”? I guess it’s possible I haven’t used that _word_. Or maybe she just wasn’t ready to process the information in the past and so she immediately forgot all about it. This is why I’m not terribly concerned with exposing them to “adult information” too soon. What they’re not ready for, they usually don’t take in, or don’t remember. Sometimes psychological defense mechanisms are a good thing. This is why I don’t do one The Talk. Lots and lots of little talks, and sooner or later it all gets through. 🙂 Ah, got it. So she probably didn’t make the association “Oh, this will happen to me as well” (or it was not explicitly pointed out). I do remember pads and I do remember blood. Mom wasn’t squeamish about that stuff with me, while I’m squeamish about that myself when around her (or anyone else). Probably because she grew up like that with her sister. It is cool that you have now a new reading list of books to look for and read before her. 😃 I also wonder, what you did with your son? Surely there were some equivalent books? ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/16 "2014-04-24T01:32:44Z")
> [@KarlGrenze](#): > > I also wonder, what you did with your son? Surely there were some equivalent books? He got some early Where Do Babies Come From chats and a couple of “Why does my computer suddenly have porn pop-ups on it, Son?” talks and then the _What’s Happening To My Body Book for Boys_ and never wanted to talk about the mechanics again with Mom. He did initiate a couple of conversations of the “Why are girls are so confusing?!” type where we talked about practicing relationships before bringing sex into the equation. When his first sexual encounter appeared immanent, I asked a male friend of mine who he was close with to make sure he had a condom and knew how to use it. By the time of the big event two days later, he had a dozen condoms and a dozen friendly chats from a dozen “uncles” who saw what was about to happen! 😃 But aside from a couple of reminders that deodorant was not optional anymore, and showering needed to happen more often, there wasn’t as much body maintenance education required. With boys, things get bigger and hairier and smellier, but not a whole lot different. And my son is a lot more private than my daughter, in all topics. ---
**Author:** ![Slippery\_Sid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d07c76/32.png) [@Slippery\_Sid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slippery_Sid)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/17 "2014-04-24T02:02:12Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > It’s that time, for my 9 year old. She’s not there yet, still got her little girl body with no sign of budding, but I know it’s coming. While we’ve had ongoing talks all along about bodies and sex, she’s beginning to grok that this is more than just an academic subject and likely to become personal in the next few years. I’d like to get a book to accidentally leave laying around so she can absorb the information as quickly or slowly as she needs to. > > When I was her age, the bible of puberty books was _What’s Happening To My Body?_ I see that it’s still on the market, in a revised edition. Is it still good? Is it the _best_, in your humble opinion? > > _Taking Charge of Your Fertility_ is on the horizon, but that’s probably going to wait until she’s been menstruating for a couple of years. Right now I’m looking for things on breast development, body changes and how to handle periods. 9 years old is way too young to start puberty. Females used to not have periods until 17. That was before they started putting hormones in meat, and before everyone ate lots of calories and processed foods. Whether it’s genes or she’s been eating junk food, it’s time to start eating vegetables. I’m a vegan male and I went through puberty really slow, as it naturally should (voice was still high at 15). It really shocks me that parents actually talk about this stuff openly, like “porn popups”. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/18 "2014-04-24T02:31:01Z")
Females used to have crappy nutrition during their lifetimes, delaying puberty past biological norm. Menarche at 17 happened in Europe in 1850. That’ll happen when you eat little more than moldy bread in your childhood. Wealthy, high caste Indian girls from 500BC to 500AD had an average age of menarche at 12. These girls were eating well before hormones and processed foods. They just had \*enough \*food. Classical Greece and Rome during the same time period saw girls menstruating just a year or two later than Indian girls. [The age of menarche in classical India - PubMed](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7025746) Average age of menarche in the US has declined by about 4 months since 1973. Median is between 13 and 16 and the [95-98 percentile is 15 years](http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/589004_3). The idea that our girls are having their first periods significantly earlier than “normal” is false. They’re getting their first visit from Aunt Flo right around the same age Greco-Roman girls did. Or did you miss the part of my post (that you quoted) which says “she’s not there yet”? ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/19 "2014-04-24T17:21:01Z")
> [@Slippery\_Sid](#): > > 9 years old is way too young to start puberty. Females used to not have periods until 17. That was before they started putting hormones in meat, and before everyone ate lots of calories and processed foods. There is plenty of reliable information about this topic available, not sure where you’re getting yours from. For example, research by [Cornell University](http://envirocancer.cornell.edu/factsheet/diet/fs37.hormones.cfm): > [@](#): > > Do hormones remain in the milk or meat of treated animals? > > The levels of naturally produced hormones vary from animal to animal, and a range in these levels is known to be normal. Because it is not possible to differentiate between the hormones produced naturally by the animal and those used to treat the animal, it is difficult to determine exactly how much of the hormone used for treatment remains in the meat or the milk. Studies indicate that if correct treatment and slaughter procedures are followed, the levels of these hormones may be slightly higher in the treated animal’s meat or milk, but are still within the normal range of natural variation known to occur in untreated animals. Scientists are currently trying to develop better methods to measure steroid hormone residues left in edible meat from a treated animal. > > Can steroid hormones in meat affect the age of puberty for girls? > > Early puberty in girls has been found to be associated with a higher risk for breast cancer. Height, weight, diet, exercise, and family history have all been found to influence age of puberty (see BCERF Fact Sheet #08, Childhood Life Events and the Risk of Breast Cancer). Steroid hormones in food were suspected to cause early puberty in girls in some reports. However, exposure to higher than natural levels of steroid hormones through hormone-treated meat or poultry has never been documented. Large epidemiological studies have not been done to see whether or not early puberty in developing girls is associated with having eaten growth hormone-treated foods. > [@](#): > > It really shocks me that parents actually talk about this stuff openly, like “porn popups”. It shocks you that parents are discussing normal human development so they can best help their children to understand what is going on with their bodies? And you compare this to porn? Maybe you would be more comfortable in Europe in 1850. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2014, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547/20 "2014-04-24T17:39:01Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Females used to have crappy nutrition during their lifetimes, delaying puberty past biological norm. Menarche at 17 happened in Europe in 1850. That’ll happen when you eat little more than moldy bread in your childhood. > > Wealthy, high caste Indian girls from 500BC to 500AD had an average age of menarche at 12. These girls were eating well before hormones and processed foods. They just had \*enough \*food. Classical Greece and Rome during the same time period saw girls menstruating just a year or two later than Indian girls. [The age of menarche in classical India - PubMed](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7025746) > > Average age of menarche in the US has declined by about 4 months since 1973. Median is between 13 and 16 and the [95-98 percentile is 15 years](http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/589004_3). > > The idea that our girls are having their first periods significantly earlier than “normal” is false. They’re getting their first visit from Aunt Flo right around the same age Greco-Roman girls did. > > Or did you miss the part of my post (that you quoted) which says “she’s not there yet”? WhyNot, if you weren’t already taken and I weren’t already taken and I were a lesbian I would _so_ ask you to gay marry me. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-favorite-puberty-manual-for-kids-these-days/686547.md?page=2)