Puberty and Sex

Your Teen Daughter: What About S-E-X? Mom, you cannot afford to ignore your role in educating your daughter about sex. Psychologist and author Dr. Nathalie Bartle (Venus in Blue Jeans: Why Mothers and Daughters Need to Talk About Sex [Dell, 19...

The Effects of Early Physical Development in Girls Building Blocks Vibrancy is a state of mental health that denotes acceptance of self and is not dependent on another person's acceptance. Girls who mature early, developing breasts before the a...

A girl's growth slows down once she starts her periods, but it doesn't stop completely. ...

Daughters: From Childhood Through Adolescence Woman to Woman Approximately 95 percent of those who suffer bulimia or anorexia are females. Only 5 to 10 percent are males. A study by the American Association of University Women reported some di...

What Parents Must Teach Their Children When children are very young, the role of teacher can be most frustrating. Getting a child to sit still long enough for a reasoned lecture or lesson is almost impossible—especially when the child is only ...

Talking to Teens About Sex and Substance Abuse Even before young people begin talking about dating or who is “seeing” whom, it’s time to bring up the subject of sex. Don’t wait for an opening or the right time. Just do it. The way you a...

Our expert addresses some common questions about menstrual flow and tampon use in young teens. ...

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What You Should Know About AIDS Chances are your teen knows far more about AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) and its transmission than you do. In most school systems teachers have found innovative ways of conveying the seriousness of th...

Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs): What Your Teen Should Know There are approximately 20 million new cases of sexually transmitted diseases each year, and one quarter of these infections occur in teenagers who have not yet finished high scho...

Teen Pregnancy What if your teen tells you she thinks she's pregnant? Your first act should be to confirm that she really is; many things can interrupt the regularity of a girl's menstrual cycle. Get her to a doctor to determine whether she's a...

It can be "normal" for a girl to skip a few months of periods, especially early on. But when is it a cause for concern? ...

What to Tell Your Teen About Sex Info Flash 53 percent of high school students say they've had sex. This means that your teen may have sex, regardless of the values you've conveyed. It is vital to talk to your teen about safe sex. If you're dead...

"I Can't Go Anywhere -- I Have a Pimple!" Info Flash Eighty-three percent of teens worry at least sometimes about their complexion; approximately one-third or more indicate that they have felt anxious, embarrassed, or frustrated by their acne. A...

Girls and Puberty In girls, breast development can begin any time between the ages of 8 and 13. (Later development may be considered “delayed” but is not necessarily abnormal.) As the breasts grow, pubic hair will begin to appear, and your d...

A mother finds a breast lump on her 11-year-old boy. Our expert weighs in on how normal this is. ...

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Boys and Puberty Info Flash To their great embarrassment, almost two-thirds of boys develop some swelling around the nipples during the early stages of puberty. This is normal. The puffiness will disappear within 12 to 18 months. Boys are every...