What is the cause of true precocious puberty?

Most of us have seen precocious puberty in the media or on TV, but we have rarely encountered it in real life. In fact, the incidence of precocious puberty is relatively low, but the incidence of precocious puberty in girls is 80%, which is relatively lower for boys. Some families will have obvious precocious puberty due to genetic genes or lack of attention after the child is born. So what is the cause of true precocious puberty?

The causes of true precocious puberty are not yet clear, also known as idiopathic precocious puberty, which accounts for 80% of precocious puberty in girls and 40% of precocious puberty in boys. Some children have a family history. Precocious puberty occurs at an earlier age.

The order of sexual development is that girls first develop breasts, which develop rapidly and may be tender, followed by the development of pubic hair and labia, increased vaginal secretions, and finally the onset of menstruation and the appearance of armpit hair. After 1 to 2 years, there will be regular menstruation and ovulation, so fertility is possible. Boys first have enlarged testicles and thickened penis, followed by the appearance of pubic hair, underarm hair, hoarse voice, acne, facial beard, and erection and ejaculation of the penis. As sexual development accelerates, bone growth also accelerates, and the child is taller than children of the same age. However, due to premature fusion of bones, the child's final height is shorter than that of normal people of the same age.

Some true precocious puberty may be caused by intracranial tumors, which occur more often in boys than in girls. Precocious puberty may occur first, and then there will be intracranial space-occupying symptoms, such as headache and vomiting. Hypothalamic dysfunction may also occur, such as polydipsia, polyuria, overeating, obesity, etc. Common tumors include hypothalamic hamartoma, and other tumors include pinealoma, craniopharyngioma, astrocytoma, ependymoma, etc., with a poor prognosis.

Some girls with hypothyroidism may develop breasts and boys may have enlarged testicles, and may suffer from true precocious puberty. However, their bone age is delayed and their growth is slow. If not treated in time, they often have mental retardation.

Most of the causes of precocious puberty are inseparable from our daily diet. For example, there are more girls than boys because the food girls eat contains higher levels of hormones. Meat snacks or unqualified milk may cause children to have precocious puberty.