Menstruation before its due time in girls.. What does it mean?

Dubai, United Arab Emirates - Girls' menstrual cycle begins early, and the time it takes for it to become regular is variable, which may indicate later health problems, according to a new study. The study's lead author, Dr. Zifan Wang, a postdoctoral research fellow at the College of Technology, said:

Chan School of Public Health at Harvard University told Ufaq News: “We found that among individuals born between 1950 and 2005, younger generations began their first menstrual cycle earlier, and the time it took for their periods to become regular also increased.” The study, published in the journal JAMA Network Open on Wednesday, reviewed data from more than 70,000 participants who filled out surveys as part of the Women's Health Study, a long-term study of menstrual cycles, using the database of the Apple Health mobile app.

Wang said the data was collected digitally, relying on people's self-reporting of information based on their memories of early menstruation, thus limiting the results. But other research has documented a trend in first menstrual cycles starting at an earlier age over time.

Wang pointed out that in the latest study, researchers compared trends in the ages of the first menstrual cycle and the length of time it takes for menstruation to become regular by age groups. They found that trends were stronger for those from racial and ethnic minority groups and/or those with lower socioeconomic status.

"This is important because early menstruation and irregular periods can indicate physical and psychosocial problems later in life, and these trends may contribute to increased adverse health outcomes and disparities in the United States," Wang explained. A vital sign in this context. Dr. Eve Feinberg, assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, who was not involved in the study, commented that menstruation is considered a vital sign.

"You want to make sure your body is regular," Feinberg added. "When cycles aren't regular, it's generally a sign that something else might be going on."

Scientists and health care providers already know that earlier periods and longer periods are associated with poor health effects, including cardiovascular disease and cancer, Wang said. Feinberg pointed out that the longer the menstrual cycle is irregular, the longer they are exposed to an imbalance between two important hormones: estrogen and progesterone.

She added that the hormone estrogen signals growth, while the hormone progesterone signals the cessation of this growth. To prevent conditions like uterine cancer, you need to get signals to start and stop growth.

She added that in theory, longer exposure to estrogen without a good progesterone balance may influence the increase in endometrial cancers and fertility problems in the future. Feinberg added that the early period in itself may pose problems.

She added that for an 8-year-old girl going through puberty, there is often a disconnect between the age of the child's mind and body. Wang saw that earlier periods may be linked to a higher BMI during childhood.

She added: "This means that childhood obesity, which is increasing in the United States, may contribute to early menstruation." Feinberg said there were other environmental factors such as nutrition or the spread of microplastics, adding that more investigation was needed.

One of the study's lead researchers, Dr. Shruthi Mahalingaiah, an assistant professor of environmental, reproductive and women's health at Harvard's TH Chan School of Public Health, said additional research could help doctors better advise people about menstruation and recognize its impact on their patients' health. Feinberg said doctors should evaluate children with early periods or long periods of irregular cycles to make sure there is not an underlying problem.

“Sometimes, even using birth control pills at an early age to help with early exposure to progesterone... may give more control of the cycle and may be protective,” she said.

But I think maybe the key is really understanding why this is the case and getting to the root cause.”