Moderators: JeffN, f1jim, John McDougall, carolve, Heather McDougall
PUTTING ADULT HORMONES IN A CHILD'S BODY
As populations of people have gradually changed their diets from plant-based to animal-based, (rich in meats, dairy products, and refined foods) the onset of sexual maturity has decreased at a rate of about 2 to 6 months per decade. For example, the age of onset of the first menses, a time known as menarche, has decreased steadily from age 17.2 years in Norway in 1830 to age 13.2 years in 1950 (WHO Monograph 62:500, 1976). Similar changes have been seen in other western European countries over the past 160 years. In Britain, over the past 150 years the average age of menarche has fallen from 16.5 years to 12.8 years (Lancet 342:1375, 1993).
In the United States, in 1900, girls started their first periods at age 14 years, by 1960 they were menstruating by an average age 12.7. In Japan, in 1875, little girls became women capable of having babies at 16.5 years of age. Just after WW II (1950) they started their first periods at age 15.2. By 1960 the age of menarche was 13.9, by 1970 it fell to 12.5--just like little white girls in the United States. The slowest onset of maturity, with an mean age of menarche of 18-19 years, was observed in women of Papua New Guinea in the 1960s--a time when the people ate a nearly vegetarian, very low-fat diet.
Users browsing this forum: ClaudeBot and 0 guests