Does eating chicken regularly really lead to early puberty? The "culprit" has finally been found

Expert of this article: Huang Yao, Master of Pediatrics, First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University

This article was reviewed by Li Congzhe, Associate Chief Physician, Department of Pediatrics, Tangshan Central Hospital

The healthy growth of children has always been a key concern for every parent, and diet is of utmost importance.

Previously, there were news warnings: It is best not to let children eat foods containing hormones such as chicken in their daily diet, otherwise it will lead to precocious puberty.

News screenshots

Is this statement reliable?

What are the hazards of precocious puberty that we don’t know yet? What other aspects should we pay attention to in life to prevent precocious puberty? Let’s learn about it today.

What is precocious puberty?

Precocious puberty refers to an abnormal sexual development disease in which children undergo puberty before a specific age limit. It is generally manifested as the development of secondary sexual characteristics before the age of 8 in girls and before the age of 9 in boys.

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Depending on whether the function of the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonadal axis is activated prematurely, it is divided into central precocious puberty (gonadotropin-releasing hormone-dependent), peripheral precocious puberty (non-gonadotropin-releasing hormone-dependent), and partial precocious puberty (including simple premature breast development, simple premature pubic hair, simple early menarche and premature adrenal function, etc.).

Can eating chicken cause precocious puberty?

In the early years, we always saw the words "chicken causes precocious puberty in children" in the news, which caused many parents to be "terrified of chicken".

In fact, there is currently no authoritative research to prove that chicken can cause precocious puberty.

Animal-derived foods do contain trace amounts of endogenous hormones, but these hormones will be partially destroyed through cooking, and it is unknown how much the human body will absorb, so they will not have a significant effect on endocrine function.

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So why did such rumors spread?

This is mainly due to the advent of the fast food era. Chicken is mostly fried and is extremely popular among children. The intake of large amounts of high-fat and high-calorie foods such as fried and puffed foods and sweets will stimulate the secretion of leptin in fat cells. Leptin is a regulator of the initiation of sexual development in the human body and can promote the secretion of gonadotropin. Excessive fat intake will affect the metabolism of estrogen, which is the mechanism that may be involved in precocious puberty.

In addition, the following reasons may also lead to precocious puberty:

Diseases of the body

Pituitary tumors, adrenal cortical hyperplasia or tumors, gonadal tumors, and other tumors that ectopically secrete hormones can all lead to abnormal hormone secretion, thereby causing precocious puberty in children.

More than 80% of boys' precocious puberty is organic, while organic lesions account for only a small part of girls' precocious puberty.

Environmental factors

Plastic products, disposable fast food boxes and foods containing pesticide residues that we can come into contact with everywhere in our lives contain endocrine disrupting chemicals such as bisphenol A and zearalenone. These substances are similar to endogenous estrogens in structure and function. They can take effect in extremely small amounts and have a very obvious impact on growth and development. Long-term exposure or consumption of these substances in children is very likely to cause precocious puberty.

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Genetics

With the development of modern medicine, genetics has long been included in the research scope of the causes of precocious puberty. For example, activating mutations in the progesterone receptor gene can affect male sexual development; autosomal dominant mutations in the GPR54 gene can cause precocious puberty in children.

Nutritional factors

There is currently not enough research to provide conclusive evidence as to whether ripening agents, preservatives, plasticizers, etc. added to food will affect children's growth and development, but professionals generally believe that there is a correlation between the two.

Information stimulation

Children in the information age are easily exposed to sexual information too early, and their sexual awareness is repeatedly stimulated, which affects children psychologically and physiologically, leading to premature activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis and ultimately causing precocious puberty.

What are the dangers of precocious puberty?

In addition to a series of physical effects brought about by organic diseases, it is also mainly reflected in the following two aspects:

1. Height restriction

Precocious puberty will accelerate physical development and premature fusion of the epiphyses (epiphyseal fusion means no more growth), making the height of children with precocious puberty generally shorter than that of children of the same age who develop according to normal puberty.

2. Psychological impact

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Because children with precocious puberty develop physically earlier but their mental development is still at the level of their actual age, they may suffer from psychological disorders. The changes in mentality caused by sexual development may also lead to a series of social problems such as early sexual behavior in children or sexual crimes among teenagers.

How to prevent precocious puberty?

1. Reduce the use of disposable plastic products and lunch boxes, and avoid using plastic bags to heat food in the microwave.

2. Scientific feeding and balanced nutrition. Reduce the intake of high-calorie and high-fat foods; cultivate children's good exercise habits to reduce the occurrence of obesity.

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3. Prevent children from being exposed to sexually stimulating information too early and frequently, and provide children with correct, timely and reasonable sex education.

4. If a child is found to have signs of precocious puberty, seek medical attention promptly to ensure early detection, early intervention, and targeted treatment.

5. Provide reasonable treatment and use of drugs to avoid the occurrence of iatrogenic precocious puberty.

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