are 19 or 20.
Sex hormones
During puberty, your body is preparing for sex and reproduction . Your body begins producing sex hormones. Both boys and girls have a mix of male and female sex hormones, although boys have mainly male hormones and girls have mainly female hormones. These hormones bring about changes not just in the way your body looks but also in how you feel.
“We often have the illusion that we are in control of our bodies. The reality is it is usually our biology that controls us. That is particularly obvious during the great rollercoaster ride of puberty.”
Professor Robert Winston, British medical doctor, scientist, television personality, and politician
ORIGIN
One sign of puberty is the increase of body hair in girls and boys. The word “puberty” means to be covered in fine hair and comes from the Latin word pubescere , meaning to grow hairy.
Peer groups bond closely as young people share the pleasures and pitfalls of growing up.
2 Body changes: girls
If you are a girl, as your body goes into puberty, hormones start to work on your ovaries and adrenal glands so they begin to produce female sex hormones called estrogen and progesterone . These hormones bring about changes in your body.
HEALTH WARNING
It is normal and healthy to put on some weight during puberty (see Body weight, page 32 ). Dieting to lose weight is not advisable unless a doctor has diagnosed a young person as overweight or obese . There are many health risks associated with not eating a balanced diet. Lack of vitamins and minerals (many found in fruit and vegetables) can cause problems such as:
• depression and irritability
• anemia
• tiredness and difficulty sleeping
• aching joints and muscle weakness
• bone and tooth decay
• skin problems
• nausea and vomiting
• headaches.
First signs
The first signs of puberty can begin any time between the ages of 8 to 13. You have a major growth spurt. Your body grows taller and starts to change shape as you become curvier and put on weight around the hips and middle. Your breasts begin to grow, showing as small swellings or “buds” under the nipples.
The vulva (the part of the body outside the vagina ) begins to develop as labia (the lips around the vagina) grow. You will also begin to notice a sticky clear or white discharge from your vagina. This can be a sign that your periods (see page 12 ) will soon start.
More changes
Hair begins to grow under girls’ arms and around the pubic area. This normally begins as fine growth and then gets thicker and darker. It may be the same color as hair on the head, but it can also be much lighter or darker. Fine hair growing on the legs can also get darker and coarser during puberty, and some girls may want to start shaving or waxing body hair. Girls will also begin to sweat more, and many choose to start using an underarm deodorant or antiperspirant to avoid body odor (B.O.).
Exercise can help you keep a healthy weight during growth spurts.
SHAVING OR WAXING?
It is common for girls to want to remove hair from their legs and underarms. Shaving is quickest and cheapest, but it can coarsen the hairs, making them feel prickly. Waxing is another option. It can be painful, but the hair takes longer to grow back. There are also gels and creams, which work by dissolving the hairs to leave the skin feeling smooth.
Shaving is a quick and easy method of hair removal for the legs and underarms.
What’s normal?
As girls go through all the body changes of puberty, they may worry about whether they are “normal,” either in the way their bodies look or in how quickly or slowly they are developing.
IT HAPPENED TO ME
When I was 13, everyone in my class was wearing a bra except me. I was totally flat, and none of the clothes I wanted to wear looked good on me. I even started thinking about cosmetic surgery when I was older. But now I am OK with the size of my breasts because I love sports and I’ve heard some girls say big breasts just get
Sex hormones
During puberty, your body is preparing for sex and reproduction . Your body begins producing sex hormones. Both boys and girls have a mix of male and female sex hormones, although boys have mainly male hormones and girls have mainly female hormones. These hormones bring about changes not just in the way your body looks but also in how you feel.
“We often have the illusion that we are in control of our bodies. The reality is it is usually our biology that controls us. That is particularly obvious during the great rollercoaster ride of puberty.”
Professor Robert Winston, British medical doctor, scientist, television personality, and politician
ORIGIN
One sign of puberty is the increase of body hair in girls and boys. The word “puberty” means to be covered in fine hair and comes from the Latin word pubescere , meaning to grow hairy.
Peer groups bond closely as young people share the pleasures and pitfalls of growing up.
2 Body changes: girls
If you are a girl, as your body goes into puberty, hormones start to work on your ovaries and adrenal glands so they begin to produce female sex hormones called estrogen and progesterone . These hormones bring about changes in your body.
HEALTH WARNING
It is normal and healthy to put on some weight during puberty (see Body weight, page 32 ). Dieting to lose weight is not advisable unless a doctor has diagnosed a young person as overweight or obese . There are many health risks associated with not eating a balanced diet. Lack of vitamins and minerals (many found in fruit and vegetables) can cause problems such as:
• depression and irritability
• anemia
• tiredness and difficulty sleeping
• aching joints and muscle weakness
• bone and tooth decay
• skin problems
• nausea and vomiting
• headaches.
First signs
The first signs of puberty can begin any time between the ages of 8 to 13. You have a major growth spurt. Your body grows taller and starts to change shape as you become curvier and put on weight around the hips and middle. Your breasts begin to grow, showing as small swellings or “buds” under the nipples.
The vulva (the part of the body outside the vagina ) begins to develop as labia (the lips around the vagina) grow. You will also begin to notice a sticky clear or white discharge from your vagina. This can be a sign that your periods (see page 12 ) will soon start.
More changes
Hair begins to grow under girls’ arms and around the pubic area. This normally begins as fine growth and then gets thicker and darker. It may be the same color as hair on the head, but it can also be much lighter or darker. Fine hair growing on the legs can also get darker and coarser during puberty, and some girls may want to start shaving or waxing body hair. Girls will also begin to sweat more, and many choose to start using an underarm deodorant or antiperspirant to avoid body odor (B.O.).
Exercise can help you keep a healthy weight during growth spurts.
SHAVING OR WAXING?
It is common for girls to want to remove hair from their legs and underarms. Shaving is quickest and cheapest, but it can coarsen the hairs, making them feel prickly. Waxing is another option. It can be painful, but the hair takes longer to grow back. There are also gels and creams, which work by dissolving the hairs to leave the skin feeling smooth.
Shaving is a quick and easy method of hair removal for the legs and underarms.
What’s normal?
As girls go through all the body changes of puberty, they may worry about whether they are “normal,” either in the way their bodies look or in how quickly or slowly they are developing.
IT HAPPENED TO ME
When I was 13, everyone in my class was wearing a bra except me. I was totally flat, and none of the clothes I wanted to wear looked good on me. I even started thinking about cosmetic surgery when I was older. But now I am OK with the size of my breasts because I love sports and I’ve heard some girls say big breasts just get
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