Lea Watoto Wako

Sex & Relationships
1

image
image1080×1198 79.3 KB

Environmental conditions, particularly those in the family domain, influence girls’ timing of puberty.5 Specifically, the absence of a biologically-related father has been shown to accelerate reproductive development.

Evolutionary life history theory,6–8 which posits that humans have evolved to display adaptive plasticity in response to contextual circumstances, provides a theoretical foundation for how human biology responds to environmental conditions. Two decades ago, Belsky, Steinberg and Draper9 extended this theory to familial conditions and sexual maturation. These researchers posited that, during human evolutionary history, when girls encountered familial conditions that were unfavorable for survival (e.g., insecure and unsupportive family relationships), it was adaptive to become reproductively mature earlier.

Since then, numerous empirical studies have confirmed that father absence predicts earlier maturation.10–13 Girls in father-absent homes are about twice as likely to experience menarche prior to age 12y. Mother absence does not appear to influence pubertal timing.10

Deardorff J, Ekwaru JP, Kushi LH, Ellis BJ, Greenspan LC, Mirabedi A, Landaverde EG, Hiatt RA. Father absence, body mass index, and pubertal timing in girls: differential effects by family income and ethnicity. J Adolesc Health. 2011 May;48(5):441-7. doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2010.07.032. Epub 2010 Sep 20. PMID: 21501801; PMCID: PMC3079910.

2

Upus analysis

3

Key conclusions from the study include:

Influence of Father Absence on Pubertal Onset: Father absence was associated with earlier onset of puberty in girls, but this effect was moderated by family income and ethnicity. Specifically, the association was significant only among higher-income families.

Ethnic-Specific Findings: Among higher-income African American families, father absence predicted earlier development of pubic hair.

BMI Considerations: The study found that BMI did not mediate the relationship between father absence and earlier pubertal onset, suggesting that the observed effects are independent of body weight.