early puberty | Autism PDD
I have read that asd kids tend to start puberty early?
Someone had posted a study that kids with asd also tend to have a higher
level of growth hormones and a higher BMI compared to peers. I wonder
if there is a relationship? At least for girls I have heard that heavier girls
go through puberty earlier because fat-cells produce estrogen.
My ds is almost eight and I hope he has a few years left. But he is in the
95% percentile for height and weight and he has had a few small break-
outs lately, so I want to be prepared if this should hit early.
It is kind of ironic that kids that might be emotionally more immature
than their peers will go through the physical aspects of puberty before
them.
Anyone know anything about that?
It's funny that you should mention it. Before my son got his autism diagnosis, this was one of my theories. I had noticed he had a little peach fuzz "down there," so I had his testosterone level checked with a blood test. It was practically zero, which was normal for his age. The doctor explained that some kids are just hairier than others.
My son is probably about average for his age in terms of height and weight.
I googled "precocious puberty" and autism, and found some sort of chelation controversy about using the puberty-suppressor Lupron to improve mercury chelation. The controversy seemed to revolve around the fact that precocious puberty is rare and Lupron has serious side-effects, so the people promoting its use were irresponsible.
Precocious puberty is rare in boys, much more common in girls. For boys anything under 9 years is considered early.
Well I know Fragile X girls are prone to early puberty. Try googling Fragile X.
It WOULD explain my 6 y/o's tendency to scream, "I HATE you!" at both parents, lately ...
Lupron though ... that is costly for one thing. I was on it for 3 months to shrink fibroids. It CAN have side-effects, including later osteoporosis.
At 6 months my son had scrotal hair, not just peach fuzz. All the tests were done and he was fine. I guess the location of the hair is important, if it's on the pubic area it's more of a concern as far as having a tumor. My doctor had 2 case in 1 week, her first cases ever. The hair fell out about 6 months later. I wonder if he will start puberty early.
My son started going through puberty this past year right on schedule. His voice has cracked, and he now has pubic hair He gets the occasional zit, but has no facial hair yet. His BMI is in the low to normal range. He is still pretty thin, at 5'3" and 98 pounds.Sheesh, I HOPE NOT! What a terrifying thought! Well, I guess I'm the X-factor on this one because I am ASD and I was nearly 15 before ANYTHING happened. uhhh... I was 12.5 when I realized I am a rugged mannly man in the full bloom of my man hood.
Ohh God, I have no idea what posessed me to post this, heh.eh... I am sitting on pins and needles. I started at 11.5 and hubby atrted around that time. DS is 6 and 100 lbs and fuzzy legs and fuzzy back, his voice cracks occassionally size 4- 5 feet, but baby face and no aggression.
That Lupron protocol is scary stuff. Chemical castration. Should only be used on very aggressive adults, not on developing children.
Both my kids are tall for their age, but so was I. I also started "developing" at around age 10, which was early back then
Lisa
Lupron is used all the time in NT kids with precociouis puberty, Challenger.
If you think Lupron is scary ... try having an 8 year odl girl, with breasts and a strong sex drive, in the Brittney, etc. era!!!
I know many mom's of NT girls that only give their daughters organic, growth homone free milk. There have been some articles linking precocious puberty to growth hormones given to animals that find their way into our foods. Not sure if this is still in the hypothesis stage or whether there is science behind it. I ven't researched it personally since I don't have girls and from what I've read this is primarily a female issue (8 years olds getting boobs and periods - YIKES!). Worth looking into though.Here's a chart of the different signs of puberty in boys.
http://www.coolnurse.com/puberty_stages_guys.htm
I'm so NOT looking forward to that...added testosterone - OMG! The aggressiveness that he had ...we've medicated for...::anxiety attack::
[QUOTE=micki]I took lupron for 3 weeks (?) when I did IVF. Gave me headaches and
made my bones hurt.[/QUOTE]
I had absolutely NO side effects from my 3 month stint. In fact I joked with my Ob/Gyn ... if THIS is menopause, BRING IT ON!!! I took lupron for 3 weeks (?) when I did IVF. Gave me headaches and
made my bones hurt.foxi...OMG I live in fear
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