Early menarche and its relationship to paternal migrant work among middle-school-aged students in China

Abstract

Associations have been shown between father’s absence and menarcheal age, but most studies have focused on absence resulting from divorce, abandonment or death. Little research has been conducted to evaluate the effect on menarcheal age of paternal absence through migrant work. In a sample of 400 middle school students, this study examined the association between paternal migrant work and menarcheal age against a backdrop of extensive rural-to-urban migration in China. Data were collected through a self-reported questionnaire, including social-demographic characteristics, aspects of family relationships, information about father’s migrant work and age at menarche. After adjusting for BMI, parent marital status and perceived relationship with mother, lower self-perceived quality of father–daughter relationship (both ‘father present, relationship poor’ and ‘father absent, relationship poor’) and lower frequency of contact with the father were associated with higher odds for early menarche. These findings suggest that the assumption that father’s absence for work influences the timing of menarche needs to be examined in the context of the quality of the father–daughter relationship and paternal care, which appear to play a critical role in the timing of menarche. These findings also emphasize the importance of enhancing paternal involvement and improving father–daughter relationships in the development of appropriate reproductive strategy in daughters.

A Systematic Literature Review of Factors Affecting the Timing of Menarche: The Potential for Climate Change to Impact Women’s Health

“…One study found that the first five years of life were the most critical for paternal influence to be protective against early menarche [104]. Another study found that it was not paternal absence, but the lack of a quality relationship with one's father that was linked with early menarche [106]. Depression, early childhood paternal absence, and early age at menarche were related to each other in another study [105].…”

“…Lack of paternal influence and quality of the paternal relationship during early childhood has been linked with early menarche [102][103][104][105][106]. One study found that the first five years of life were the most critical for paternal influence to be protective against early menarche [104].…”