The New Puberty: How to Navigate Early Development in Today's Girls

A generation ago, fewer than 5 percent of girls started puberty before the age of 8; today, that percentage has more than doubled. Early puberty is not just a matter of physical transformation—it’s also deeply psychological, with a myriad of effects that can put a girl at higher risk for behavioral problems and long-term health challenges.

In this reassuring and empowering guide, Louise Greenspan, MD, and Julianna Deardorff, PhD—two leading experts on the root causes and potential consequences of early puberty in girls—deliver vital advice on how to prevent and manage early puberty. They explain surprising triggers—from excess body fat to hormone-mimicking chemicals to emotional stressors in a girl’s home and family life—and offer highly practical strategies, including how to limit exposure to certain ingredients in personal care and household products, which foods to eat and which to avoid, ways to improve a child’s sleep routine to promote healthy biology, and more.

The New Puberty is an engaging, urgently needed road map to helping young girls move forward with confidence, ensuring their future well-being.

Louise Greenspan, MD, and Julianna Deardorff, PhD, won the 2013 Community Breast Cancer Research Award from Zero Breast Cancer. They have contributed to Time, Science, New York Times Magazine, US News and World Report, Good Morning America, and NPR. They live in San Francisco.