Growing levels of obesity are seeing some girls start puberty as young as seven, studies show.
Experts say the extra fat tissue is encouraging young bodies to produce hormones which kickstart sexual changes.
Researchers in the U.S. found that one in ten girls aged seven had developed breast tissue, one of the first signs of puberty.
Doctors in Britain backed up the research, saying they have treated girls of seven and eight with puberty problems.
They warn that the early exposure to oestrogen has serious health implications because it puts the girls more at risk of breast cancer and heart disease.
They are also more likely to be bullied and could be encouraged into sexual relationships by teenage boys who take them to be a few years older.
Dr Jeremy Allegrove, a consultant paediatrician at the Royal London Hospital, said: ‘We do see girls as young as seven and eight who have started puberty.
'The reason we see them is that mothers bring them in concerned that they are developing very early and will be starting their periods before secondary school. ‘It is only a small amount. I could not say how many.
‘Sometimes we treat them to delay the onset of puberty, sometimes we don’t, depending on the circumstances.’
Experts say the extra fat tissue is encouraging young bodies to produce hormones which kickstart sexual changes.
Researchers in the U.S. found that one in ten girls aged seven had developed breast tissue, one of the first signs of puberty.Doctors in Britain backed up the research, saying they have treated girls of seven and eight with puberty problems.
They warn that the early exposure to oestrogen has serious health implications because it puts the girls more at risk of breast cancer and heart disease.
They are also more likely to be bullied and could be encouraged into sexual relationships by teenage boys who take them to be a few years older.
Dr Jeremy Allegrove, a consultant paediatrician at the Royal London Hospital, said: ‘We do see girls as young as seven and eight who have started puberty.'The reason we see them is that mothers bring them in concerned that they are developing very early and will be starting their periods before secondary school. ‘It is only a small amount. I could not say how many.
‘Sometimes we treat them to delay the onset of puberty, sometimes we don’t, depending on the circumstances.’
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