<i>Response</i>
            : Menarche and Fatness: Reexamination of the Critical Body Composition Hypothesis

Frisch, Rose E.

doi:10.1126/science.200.4349.1509

Cited by 31 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…The decreasing trend of age at menarche observed in the past has been largely attributed to improvement in socioeconomic conditions and in food availability, which would contribute to ameliorate the children nutritional status. [ 22 30 31 32 ] Research supports the hypothesis that a critical fat mass is necessary for menarche to occur. [ 33 ] In the present study, the current BMI, calculated from self-reported weight and stature at the time of the survey, was used as a surrogate of the nutritional status of the girl at menarche, assuming that in absence of diseases, nutritional conditions track from childhood BMI to adulthood.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 86%

Onset of menstrual cycle and menses features among secondary school girls in Italy: A questionnaire study on 3,783 students

Sanctis

Bernasconi

Bianchin

et al. 2014

Indian J Endocr Metab

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Premise:Healthcare professionals need updated information about what is the range of “normal” variation of menstrual cycle features to support young girls and their parents in managing reproductive health, and to detect diseases early.Materials and Methods:This cross-sectional study aimed to provide an updated picture of age at menarche and main menstrual cycle characteristics and complaints in an Italian population-based sample of 3,783 adolescents attending secondary school. Girls filled in a self-administered anonymous questionnaire including questions about demography, anthropometry, smoking and drinking habits, use of contraceptive, socioeconomic status, age at menarche, menstrual pattern, and physical/psychological menstrual complaints. Mean age at menarche and prevalence of polymenorrhea (cycle length < 21 days), oligomenorrhea (cycle length > 35 days), irregularity, dysmenorrhea, and of physical/psychological complaints were computed. Factors associated with age at menarche and menstrual disturbances were explored by using multiple logistic models.Results:The girls’ mean age was 17.1 years (SD 1.4 years) and the mean age at menarche was 12.4 years (SD 1.3 years); menarche occurred with two monthly peaks of frequency in July–September and in December–January (P < 0.0001). Age at menarche was significantly associated with geographic genetics (as expressed by parents’ birth area), mother's menarcheal age, BMI, family size, and age at data collection. The prevalence of polymenorrhea was about 2.5%, oligomenorrhea was declared by 3.7%, irregular length by 8.3%, while long bleeding (>6 days) was shown in 19.6% of girls. Gynecological age was significantly associated with cycle length (P < 0.0001) with long cycles becoming more regular within the fourth year after menarche, while frequency of polymenorrhea stabilized after the second gynecological year. Oligomenorrhea and irregularity were both significantly associated with long menstrual bleeding (adjusted OR = 2.36; 95% CI = 1.55-3.60, and adjusted OR = 2.59; 95% CI = 1.95-3.44, respectively).Conclusions:The findings of the study support the levelling-off of secular trend in menarche anticipation in Italy and confirm the timing in menstrual cycle regularization. The study provides updated epidemiological data on frequency of menstrual abnormalities to help reproductive health professionals in managing adolescent gynecology.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 86%

Onset of menstrual cycle and menses features among secondary school girls in Italy: A questionnaire study on 3,783 students

Sanctis

Bernasconi

Bianchin

et al. 2014

Indian J Endocr Metab

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“…In fact, the TFAP2B locus has recently also been associated with adult BMI (25). These findings may suggest that the high energy cost of pregnancy and lactation (which becomes an issue as soon as a female reaches menarche and can conceive) drives a stronger shared genetic basis between overall adiposity and menarche than with fat distribution (49,50).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Association of Adiposity Genetic Variants With Menarche Timing in 92,105 Women of European Descent

Fernández-Rhodes¹,

Demerath²,

Cousminer³

et al. 2013

American Journal of Epidemiology

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Obesity is of global health concern. There are well-described inverse relationships between female pubertal timing and obesity. Recent genome-wide association studies of age at menarche identified several obesity-related variants. Using data from the ReproGen Consortium, we employed meta-analytical techniques to estimate the associations of 95 a priori and recently identified obesity-related (body mass index (weight (kg)/height (m)(2)), waist circumference, and waist:hip ratio) single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with age at menarche in 92,116 women of European descent from 38 studies (1970-2010), in order to estimate associations between genetic variants associated with central or overall adiposity and pubertal timing in girls. Investigators in each study performed a separate analysis of associations between the selected SNPs and age at menarche (ages 9-17 years) using linear regression models and adjusting for birth year, site (as appropriate), and population stratification. Heterogeneity of effect-measure estimates was investigated using meta-regression. Six novel associations of body mass index loci with age at menarche were identified, and 11 adiposity loci previously reported to be associated with age at menarche were confirmed, but none of the central adiposity variants individually showed significant associations. These findings suggest complex genetic relationships between menarche and overall obesity, and to a lesser extent central obesity, in normal processes of growth and development.

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“…A shortened, less efficient reproductive span is observed also among the poor populations of many developing countries today, when data on age of menarche, age of menopause, length of birth intervals and pregnancy wastage are available (Chen et al, 1974; references in Frisch, 1978aFrisch, , 1979. If undernutrition, instead of folk contraception, is the explanation for the relatively low completed family size in developing countries, the need for family planning programmes may be much greater than realized heretofore, since in some groups of an undernourished population the concept of control of fertility may not be present.…”

Section: Nutrition and Natural Fertility: Human Reproduction Recmentioning

confidence: 99%

Body Fat, Puberty and Fertility

Frisch¹

1984

Biological Reviews

Self Cite

294

124

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Summary 1. The high percentage of fat, about 26–28% in the mature human female, may influence reproductive ability directly through two mechanisms: (a) fat converts androgens to oestrogens; (b) relative fatness influences the direction of metabolism of oestrogen to the most potent or least potent forms. The relative degree of fatness thus is directly related to both the quantity of circulating oestrogen and the biological effectiveness of the oestrogen. This is a neat mechanism for relating rates of growth, nutrition and energy outputs to the energy requirements for reproduction. Fat is the most labile body tissue; it therefore reflects environmental changes more rapidly than other tissues of the body. 2. The slow maturation of the hypothalamus and pituitary up to menarche, or first oestrus, is accompanied by a slow maturation of the body, which changes not only in size but in the relative proportion of bone, muscle, and fat. Evidence is presented that a particular threshold ratio of fat to lean mass is normally necessary for puberty and the maintenance of female reproductive ability in the human and in the rat. The synchronizing mechanisms may be metabolic, relating food intake to core temperature and/or fat storage. 3. Undernutrition and weight loss in the range of 10–15 % of normal weight for height delays menarche and causes amenorrhoea. Ballet dancers and athletes also have delayed menarche and amenorrhoea. The cessation of reproduction in both groups can be considered adaptive. Refeeding and/or cessation of intense activity results in the initiation or resumption of menstrual cycles after varying periods of time. A necessary threshold weight for height can be predicted from a fatness index. 4. Differences in the natural fertility of historical and contemporary populations may be explained by a direct effect of food intake and energy outputs on fecundity. 5. The late maturing fat ‐ ‘sex fat’ ‐ may have a special role in reproduction.

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Response : Menarche and Fatness: Reexamination of the Critical Body Composition Hypothesis

Cited by 31 publications

References 32 publications

Onset of menstrual cycle and menses features among secondary school girls in Italy: A questionnaire study on 3,783 students

Onset of menstrual cycle and menses features among secondary school girls in Italy: A questionnaire study on 3,783 students

Association of Adiposity Genetic Variants With Menarche Timing in 92,105 Women of European Descent

Body Fat, Puberty and Fertility

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