Original articleFather Absence, Body Mass Index, and Pubertal Timing in Girls: Differential Effects by Family Income and Ethnicity
Section snippets
Current study
We used data from a prospective study of ethnically diverse girls to test whether father absence predicts pubertal markers that occur before menarche (i.e., thelarche, pubarche). The activation of the gonadal axis is linked to fat deposition; therefore, we predicted that BMI would mediate the effect of father absence on thelarche, but not pubarche. We expected father absence to directly influence pubarche, which would lend mechanistic support to the hormonal stress response related to the
Methods
This project was carried out as part of the NIEHS/NCI Breast Cancer and the Environment Research Centers, four centers with transdisciplinary research collaborations across biologic, epidemiologic, and community outreach projects [21]. The present investigation focused on one epidemiologic project, the Cohort Study of Young Girls' Nutrition, Environment, and Transitions. Study approval was obtained by Institutional Review Boards of participating universities and Kaiser Permanente of Northern
Preliminary analyses
Median age at baseline was 7.4 years (Table 1). The age distribution was similar across ethnic groups. Of the 444 participants, 80 (18%) reported absence of their biological father at baseline. Of these 80 participants, 21% (n = 17) reported other males in the household, including stepfathers (n = 12) and other nonrelated adult males (n = 5). Analyses were run with and without these 17 participants to ensure that findings were because of father absence and not other males. Results were
Discussion
This is the first known study to prospectively examine the effects of father absence on breast and pubic hair development, while taking into account BMI, ethnicity, and income. Findings indicated that father absence in higher-income, but not lower-income families resulted in girls exhibiting earlier pubertal onset than those from father-present homes. Despite the evidence that the secular trend in pubertal timing among girls in United States is largely influenced by body weight, our results
Acknowledgments
This research was made possible by the Breast Cancer and the Environment Research Centers grant number U01 ES/CA 012801 from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Cancer Institute, NIH, DHHS. This research was also supported by a training grant, K12 HD 052163, awarded to the first author from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the Office of Research on Women's Health, NIH, DHHS. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the
References (40)
- et al.
Puberty and gender interact to predict social anxiety symptoms in early adolescence
J Adolesc Health
(2007) Age at puberty and father absence in a national probability sample
J Adolesc
(2005)Father absence, parental care, and female reproductive development
Evol Hum Behav
(2003)- et al.
The programming of individual differences in defensive responses and reproductive strategies in the rat through variations in maternal care
Neurosci Biobehav Rev
(2005) - et al.
Endocrine disrupters and female reproductive health
Best Pract Res Clin Endocrinol Metab
(2006) - et al.
Endocrine characteristics of adolescent menstrual cycles: Impact of early menarche
J Steroid Biochem
(1984) Epidemiology of endocrine-related risk factors for breast cancer
J Mammary Gland Biol Neoplasia
(2002)- et al.
Early puberty and adolescent pregnancy: The influence of alcohol use
Pediatrics
(2005) - et al.
Examination of US puberty-timing data from 1940 to 1994 for secular trends: Panel findings
Pediatrics
(2008) Timing of pubertal maturation in girls: An integrated life history approach
Psychol Bull
(2004)
Life history invariants
The evolution of life histories: Theory and analysis
The evolution of life histories
Childhood experience, interpersonal development, reproductive strategy: An evolutionary theory of socialization
Child Dev
Age of menarche: The role of some psychosocial factors
Psychol Med
Impact of fathers on daughters' age at menarche: A genetically- and environmentally-controlled sibling study
Dev Psychol
Epigenetic programming of phenotypic variations in reproductive strategies in the rat through maternal care
J Neuroendocrinol
Influence of obesity on timing of puberty
Int J Androl
Childhood experience and the onset of menarche: A test of a sociobiological model
Child Dev
Family environments, adrenarche, and sexual maturation: A longitudinal test of a life history model
Child Dev
Cited by (94)
Childhood adversity and accelerated reproductive events: a systematic review and meta-analysis
2024, American Journal of Obstetrics and GynecologySystematic evidence mapping informs a class-based approach to assessing personal care products and pubertal timing
2023, Environment InternationalUrinary neonicotinoid concentrations and pubertal development in Chinese adolescents: A cross-sectional study
2022, Environment InternationalThe onset of pubertal development and actigraphy-assessed sleep during middle childhood: Racial, gender, and genetic effects
2022, Sleep HealthCitation Excerpt :Our findings also suggest that children may be exposed to shared environmental factors influencing pubertal development. Previously identified environmental factors linked to pubertal development include endocrine-disrupting chemicals, family structure and stress, and socioeconomic status.44,45 As genetic and environmental influences on pubertal development are present during childhood, it remains critical to identify important environmental factors potentially affecting pubertal onset and sleep.