title: Socio-environmental factors associated with pubertal development in female adolescents: the role of prepubertal tobacco and alcohol use.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Alcohol administered to laboratory animals has been shown to suppress puberty-related hormones and delay puberty by interfering with ovarian development and function. The effects of early substance use on human pubertal development are relatively unexplored.
  
  
  METHODS
  This cross-sectional study of 3,106 female adolescents, aged 11-21 years, evaluated the association between prepubertal alcohol and tobacco use and the onset of puberty. Ages at initial breast development, body hair growth, and menarche were self-reported. Prepubertal alcohol and tobacco use were defined as the age at first use before the age of pubertal development and accompanied by regular use. Hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated using Cox proportional hazard models. Logistic regression was used to estimate the association between substance use and delayed puberty, defined as lack of breast development by the age of 13 years.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Unadjusted models indicated prepubertal tobacco use was associated with a longer time required for breast development (HR = 0.74; 95% CI, 0.65-0.85) and body hair growth (HR = 0.81; 95% CI, 0.71-0.93). Prepubertal alcohol use was associated with late breast development (HR = 0.71; 95% CI, 0.57-0.88). The direction of the observed associations remained consistent after adjusting for covariates, but the magnitude of effects were attenuated and the upper bound of the 95% CIs exceeded the null value. Girls who used alcohol before puberty had four times the odds of having delayed puberty (OR = 3.99; 95% CI, 1.94-8.21) as compared with nonusers.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results of this study suggest that the endocrine-disrupting effects of alcohol and tobacco use may alter the timing of pubertal development. These cross-sectional findings warrant further investigation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA. Jennifer-peck@ouhsc.edu
authors.forename: Jennifer D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Peck
authors.forename: B Mitchell
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Peck
authors.forename: Valerie J
authors.initials: VJ
authors.lastname: Skaggs
authors.forename: Miyuki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fukushima
authors.forename: Howard B
authors.initials: HB
authors.lastname: Kaplan
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D041923:Adolescent Development / Q000502:physiology*; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003710:Demography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D016015:Logistic Models; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D011628:Puberty, Delayed / Q000503:physiopathology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000503:physiopathology*