HHS HealthBeat (May 5, 2010)

Later teenhood

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

Kids often can’t wait to look like teenagers. But researchers at the University of Michigan, who looked at data on more than 400 boys, say puberty was more likely to begin later in overweight and obese boys.

Researcher Joyce Lee:

"Of boys in the heaviest group, 14 percent had later onset of puberty, versus only 7 percent of boys in the thinnest group."  (7 seconds)

Lee defines later onset as starting puberty after 11 and a half years of age. Boys typically start puberty at around age 10.

Lee also notes that obese boys are more likely to develop conditions such as heart disease and diabetes after they grow up.

The study in Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Learn more at hhs.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I’m Ira Dreyfuss.

Last revised: November 21, 2011