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Early Menstruation |
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As if puberty weren't difficult enough for twelve- and thirteen-year-olds,an increasing number of girls as young as six and seven are showing signs of sexual maturity. Earlier puberty has been a growing trend for more than a century; as Dr. Robert Lustig, a pediatric endocrinologist with the UCSF Medical Center, noted on the Feb. 24 episode of KQED Radio's Forum program, the age of sexual development among girls has been decreasing since the 1800's. He and other researchers attribute this shift in part to better nutrition and the accompanying nationwide increase in obesity: fat tissue has been shown to contribute to the production of estrogen, the hormone responsible for inducing puberty in young women. |
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'...early-maturing girls have been found to exhibit significantly more behavior problems than their peers who menstruate on time' (Caspi & Moffitt, 1991). |
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'...it is generally accepted that early onset of puberty is stressful for girls' (Kornfield, 1990). |
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Menstruation & Self-Esteem |
'Using an SDU stops the secrecy and ends the shame while still maintaining hygiene in the home.' |
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Attitudes to menarche destroy girls' self-esteem.
The lack of recognition of menarche (her first period) is now being acknowledged as a source of self-esteem problems for adolescent girls. It has been well-documented that the self-esteem of girls plummets at puberty. This may well be a cause of the terrifying epidemic of eating disorders among young women. 3 There is also a link between school absenteeism and menstruation, strongest in the first year after menarche and caused as much by embarrassment, depression, and fear of blood showing on clothing as by any physiological symptoms. A detailed study last year goes on to suggest that shame about menstruation creates an overall sense of body shame which affects not only a young woman's self-esteem but also her sexual behaviour and ability to make wise sexual decisions. 4
Addressing menstrual shame early on in a girl's life may help create a positive image. Ending shame means ending the secrecy that surrounds menstruation. Being open about the existance of menstruation at an early age ends the shame.
Using an SDU stops the secrecy and ends the shame while still maintaining hygiene in the home. '...early-maturing girls have been found to exhibit significantly more behavior problems than their peers who menstruate on time' (Caspi & Moffitt, 1991).
'...it is generally accepted that early onset of puberty is stressful for girls' (Kornfield, 1990). |
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How Can You Help Her? |
'Using an SDU stops the secrecy and ends the shame while still maintaining hygiene in the home.' |
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It is well documented that girls start to menstruate earlier due to protein-rich diets and hormones in food. In previous generations the age of girls first period was on average between 14-17 yrs. Now that figure is between 11-13 yrs. |
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So whether a young girl is emotionally ready or not the chances are she will have to face and handle the onset of menstruation at a younger age than previous generations. |
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As a mother how can you make this life changing experience easier? Be ProActive as early as you can. Don't hide menstruation from your daughter. You may believe that you are protecting her but what you are actually doing is shaming her by teaching menstruation is something to hide. |
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There are specifically written books available to help with this very subject such as 'Puberty Girl' by Shushann Movsessian. But you also need to guide your daughter on the practicalities of menstruation. This includes disposal of pads and tampons. |
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Girls do not like to carry their used sanitary items to a household bin in front of family and friends and normal bathroom bin leads to embarrassing visuals and smells. With flushing the items out of the question as it leads to block plumbing and polluted waterways, what can you advise her? |
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Try an SDU. Placed in the toilet/lavatory or her bedroom will ease the anxiety of menstruation and take the 'Hygiene Hassle' away. |
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ProActive Mothers |
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3 It is well documented that puberty can initiate a dangerous plummet of self-esteem for girls. This can lead to heart breaking behavioural and psychological issues. |
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A crucial aim for Mothers is to empower their daughters with a stable understanding of being female without scaring them. |
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If you want your daughter to have an easy transition into womanhood and puberty start using an SDU now. With an SDU next to the toilet it will give an natural way for you to introduce the concept of menstruation and make it an excepted and normal part of life. By doing this you will avoid the mistake of so many mother's by trying to hide menstruation from their daughters and introducing it at a later stage when it can shock and frighten them. |
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Web resources |
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3 NY Times - Women's Health Special
4 Cycles of shame: menstrual shame, body shame, and sexual decision-making, Journal of Sex Research, Nov 2005 by Deborah Schooler, L. Monique Ward, Ann Merriweather, Allison S. Caruthers
Salon.com article pointing to environmental estrogen as a main cause of early menarche.
ScienceDaily News article about how PBBs contribute to earlier menstruation.
ScienceDaily News article linking maternal depression and early menarche.
CNN.com article outlining some factors influencing early menarche, including
obesity, stress, and pesticides.
The Center for Policy Research (a nonprofit dedicated to publishing and objectively presenting research on women and children's health issues) reports that sexual development in very young children is no longer considered abnormal.
Our Stolen Future : promotional site for the book of the same title. Discusses how different chemicals can influence the onset of puberty, providing good documentation and analyses of scientific journal articles .
An article at WebMd outlines the situation and calls for more research about the causes. |
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