Puberty

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Basics

• Summary
• Start Here
• Symptoms
• Diagnosis and Tests
• Treatments and Therapies

Learn More

• Specifics
• Genetics

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Research

• Clinical Trials
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Find an Expert

For You

• Children
• Teenagers
• Patient Handouts

Summary

Puberty is the time in life when a boy or girl becomes sexually mature. It is a process that usually happens between ages 10 and 14 for girls and ages 12 and 16 for boys. It causes physical changes, and affects boys and girls differently.

In girls:

• The first sign of puberty is usually breast development.
• Then hair grows in the pubic area and armpits.
• Menstruation (or a period) usually happens last.

In boys:

• Puberty usually begins with the testicles and penis getting bigger.
• Then hair grows in the pubic area and armpits.
• Muscles grow, the voice deepens, and facial hair develops as puberty continues.

Both boys and girls may get acne. They also usually have a growth spurt (a rapid increase in height) that lasts for about 2 or 3 years. This brings them closer to their adult height, which they reach after puberty.

NIH: National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

Start Here

• For Parents: What to Expect When Your Child Goes through Puberty (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
• Physical Development: What's Normal? What's Not? (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
• Understanding Puberty (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation)
• What Are Normal Puberty, Precocious Puberty, and Delayed Puberty? (Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) Also in Spanish

Symptoms

• What Are the Symptoms of Puberty, Precocious Puberty, and Delayed Puberty? (Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) Also in Spanish

Diagnosis and Tests

• Blood Test: Estradiol (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Blood Test: Testosterone (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Estrogen Levels Test (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
• How Do Health Care Providers Diagnose Precocious Puberty and Delayed Puberty? (Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) Also in Spanish

Treatments and Therapies

• What Are Common Treatments for Problems of Puberty? (Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) Also in Spanish

Specifics

• Boys and Puberty (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
• Concerns Boys Have about Puberty (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
• Concerns Girls Have about Puberty (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
• Girls and Puberty (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
• Precocious Puberty (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation)
• Talking to Your Child about Puberty (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Genetics

• Central precocious puberty: MedlinePlus Genetics (National Library of Medicine)
• Familial male-limited precocious puberty: MedlinePlus Genetics (National Library of Medicine)

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Puberty (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: The association between salivary oxytocin, age, and puberty in children with...
• Article: The influence of relative pubertal maturity on executive function development in...
• Article: Effect of acute exercise on gene expression in peripheral blood mononuclear...
• Puberty -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Also in Spanish
• KidsHealth (Nemours Foundation)

Children

• All about Puberty (For Kids) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Body Hair (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health)
• Boys and Puberty (For Kids) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Breasts and Bras (For Kids) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Changes to Your Breasts (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health)
• Timing and Stages of Puberty (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health)
• What's an Adam's Apple? (For Kids) (Nemours Foundation)
• When Will I Get My Period? (For Kids) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Teenagers

• Body Odor (For Young Men) (Boston Children's Hospital)
• Body Odor (For Young Women) (Boston Children's Hospital) Also in Spanish
• Can I Stop Myself From Having a Wet Dream? (For Teens) (Nemours Foundation)
• Delayed Puberty (For Teens) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Douching (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health)
• Everything You Wanted to Know about Puberty (For Teens) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Gynecomastia (For Teens) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Why Is My Voice Changing? (For Teens) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

• Delayed puberty in boys (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Delayed puberty in girls (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Precocious puberty (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Puberty in boys (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Puberty in girls (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish