Age of menarche in contemporary British teenagers: survey of girls born between 1982 and 1986
BMJ 2001; 322 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.322.7294.1095 (Published 05 May 2001) Cite this as: BMJ 2001;322:1095
All rapid responses
Pupils remain in Primary School upto the age of 11 years. More
precisely, they start Secondary School during the academic year (1st
September-30th August) when they are `rising 12' i.e. during which their
12th birthday occurs.
Competing interests: No competing interests
Pupils in the state education system in the UK move from primary to
secondary school when they are 11.
In addition to the need for providing sanitary facilities, it is also
essential to provide education in preparation for starting periods, and
the concurrent fertility. Straightforward education covering the
issues of puberty and pregnancy does not always take place at the primary
level, and can still be too late.
Competing interests: No competing interests
The article by Whincup et al is interesting but not surprising. It is
a known fact that age of menarche after gradually falling has probably
reached a plateau now especially in developed world although it is still
falling in developing countries as their nutrition is still not optimal.
Malnutrition,anaemia and worm infestation and chronic infections
especially tuberculosis are still rampant in third world countries like
India leading on to late menarche. One of us ( S.Sharma) in a recent
unpublished study found in her 28 cases of pulmonary and extra-pulmonary
tuberculosis in young girls, primary amenorrhoea in 8(28.5%) cases and
secondary amenorrhoea in 10 girls (35.7%), making it a significant cause of
late menarche in India.Even PCO can cause late menarche in some cases. So
these causes must be excluded before planning studies about age of
menarche especially in third world countries.
Competing interests: No competing interests
Though this article is very interesting, we in the U.S. do not use
the term "primary school", so a definition (school grade or age) would
have been useful. Thanks.
Competing interests: No competing interests
Sex education is still required at an early age
Editor,
While we welcome Whincup et al's report1 that the age of menarche has
not changed appreciably in the past 20-30 years; this may give rise to
complacency regarding teenage sexual activity and conception.
In the last century, there has been an acceleration in the rate of
physical growth of children and adolescents resulting in earlier
maturation.2 This highlights the clear need for appropriate information
for both girls and boys.3,4,5
National statistics confirm the disturbing fact that young girls and
boys are engaging in sexual activity with the resultant high teenage
pregnancy rates which are higher than most of our European neighbours.6
A pragmatic and timely approach to this issue is required. The
recently published teenage pregnancy document outlines useful strategies
for tackling this problem.7
Authors:
Oluwatoyin Ejidokun
Specialist registrar in public health medicine
Birmingham Public Health Laboratory,
Birmingham B9 5SS
Diane McNulty
Health promoting schools co-ordinator
John Linnane
Consultant in public health medicine
Sam Ramaiah
Director of public health
Walsall Health Authority,
Walsall WS1 1TE
1 Whincup PH, Gilg JA, Odoki K, Taylor SJC, Cook DG. Age of menarche
in contemporary British teenagers: survey of girls born between 1982 and
1986. BMJ 2001; 322: 1095-6 (5 May).
2 Tanner JM. Foetus into man. London: Open University Books, 1978.
3 Ejidokun O, McNulty D, Linnane J, Ramaiah S. Sex eduation should
begin in primary school. BMJ 1999; 318:57 (2 January).
4 West Midlands young people's lifestyle survey: 1995-1996.
Birmingham: NHS Executive West Midlands, 1997.
5 Department for Education and Employment. Sex and realtionships
education guidance. London: Stationery Office, 2000.
6 Office for National Statistics.
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/ssdataset.asp?vlnk=3459
7 Social Exclusion Unit. Teenage pregnancy report. London:
Stationery Office, 1999.
Competing interests: No competing interests