(News Article) Study Suggests a Correlation Between Early Alcohol/Tobacco Use and Delayed Puberty in Girls

A new study may have shed further light on the dangers of early alcohol and tobacco use. The study, led by Jennifer Peck, Ph.D. at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, suggests that early smoking and drinking in girls may delay puberty.

Data from interviews with 3,106 females from ages 11 to 21, about drug and tobacco use and sexual development, was compiled and examined. The girls and women were asked when they first started using alcohol or tobacco and when they first started noticing signs of puberty.

“What catches the eye in the study…was that girls who reported pre-pubertal alcohol use had four times the odds of late breast development compared to girls who did not use alcohol,” Peck said.

Although less than three percent of females reported substance use at early ages, those who did were more likely to experience puberty later than those who did not.

Late puberty in girls has been shown to have various negative health impacts. Girls who experience puberty past age 13 may not grow as tall as nor develop bones as strong as girls who experience earlier puberty. Late puberty in girls is also linked to increased risk of infertility, miscarriage and physiological stress.

Phyllis Ellickson, Ph.D and expert on substance abuse says the study still leaves many questions unanswered and that there is no reason to believe that early alcohol and tobacco use is a direct cause of late puberty in girls. However, Ellickson concedes, “The bottom line is that the study raises an important issue that merits rigorous examination.”