By FRANCA OFILI

An Abuja-based medical practitioner, Dr Chioma Ofoekii, says it is normal

for a girl to start menstruation as early as eight years.

She told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Abuja that a girl’s body can begin to change into that of an adult too soon, which is called precocious puberty.

Menstruation, or period, is normal vaginal bleeding that occurs as part of a woman’s monthly circle.

Every month, the woman’s body prepares for pregnancy; if no pregnancy occurs, the uterus, or womb, sheds its lining. The menstrual blood is partly blood and partly tissue from inside the uterus.

Ofoekii, who said that precocious puberty usually occurs before the age of eight in girls and before the age of nine in boys, added that “it refers to the onset of secondary sexual characteristics before the age of eight years.

“In girls, this will commonly manifest as breast development, menstrual bleeding, pubic and auxiliary hairs, acne and rapid bone and muscle growth.

“A girl who starts menstruation at a young age is usually because the hormones responsible for puberty are being produced earlier.

“The symptoms in boys include enlarged testicles and penis, a deepening voice and facial hair, often on the upper lip.

She said that at the level of the brain, causes include hypothalamic lesions, hydrocephalus, brain tumours, infections and trauma.

She said other causes include ovarian cysts, tumours of the adrenal gland, congenital adrenal hyperplasia and obesity.

According to her, it is important to note that it can also be genetic, in which case it is just based on family genes.

She said that family history may reveal similar early onset of puberty in the mother and other female siblings.

Ofoekii said that some complications are short height, low self esteem and psychological stress. (NAN)