Elsevier

The Journal of Pediatrics

Volume 151, Issue 5, November 2007, Pages 488-493
The Journal of Pediatrics

Original article
Advanced Pubertal Status at Age 11 and Lower Physical Activity in Adolescent Girls

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpeds.2007.04.017Get rights and content

Objective

To examine the relationship between pubertal timing and physical activity.

Study design

A longitudinal sample of 143 adolescent girls was assessed at ages 11 and 13 years. Girls’ pubertal development was assessed at age 11 with blood estradiol levels, Tanner breast staging criteria, and parental report of pubertal development. Girls were classified as early maturers (n = 41) or later maturers (n = 102) on the basis of their scores on the 3 pubertal development measures. Dependent variables measured at age 13 were average minutes/day of moderate to vigorous and vigorous physical activity as measured by the ActiGraph accelerometer.

Results

Early-maturing girls had significantly lower self-reported physical activity and accumulated fewer minutes of moderate to vigorous and vigorous physical activity and accelerometer counts per day at age 13 than later maturing girls. These effects were independent of differences in percentage body fat and self-reported physical activity at age 11.

Conclusion

Girls experiencing early pubertal maturation at age 11 reported lower subsequent physical activity at age 13 than their later maturing peers. Pubertal maturation, in particular early maturation relative to peers, may lead to declines in physical activity among adolescent girls.

Section snippets

Participants

Participants were 143 adolescent non-Hispanic white girls who were part of a longitudinal study examining girls’ nutrition, dieting, physical activity, and health. Approval for research involving human participants was obtained from the Institutional Review Board at the Pennsylvania State University. Participants were assessed at ages 11 (mean = 11.33, SD = .29) and 13 (mean = 13.32, SD = .28) years. Parents and the participants provided written informed consent for all procedures. Only girls

Results

The percentage of girls who lived in households with reported incomes of less than $35,000, $35,001 to $49,999, or $50,000 or more per year was 16%, 24%, and 60%, respectively. The average years of education for mothers was 14.42 years and for fathers was 14.89 years. On the basis of the composite pubertal development variable, 30% (n = 41) of the girls were classified as earlier maturers, and 70% (n = 102) of the girls were classified as later maturers (Table I). With respect to weight status,

Discussion

Results from this study indicate that earlier timing of pubertal development at age 11 is associated with lower levels of physical activity at age 13. This relationship remained after controlling for body fatness, self-reported physical activity, and family SES at age 11. Consequently, the identified associations are not driven by preestablished levels of physical activity (ie, low-active girls maturing more quickly than high-active girls) or body fat (ie, girls who are more overweight and more

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  • Cited by (0)

    Supported by NIH grants (HD 32973, M01 RR10732) and (HD 46567-01).

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