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Menarche (/məˈnɑːrki/mə-NAR-kee; from Ancient Greek μήν (mēn) 'month', and ἀρχή (arkhē) 'beginning') is the first menstrual cycle, or first menstrual bleeding, in female humans. From both social and medical perspectives, it is often considered the central event of female puberty, as it signals the possibility of fertility.
Girls experience menarche at different ages.[1][2] Having menarche occur between the ages of 9–14 in the West is considered normal.[3] Canadian psychological researcher Niva Piran claims that menarche or the perceived average age of puberty is used in many cultures to separate girls from activity with boys, and to begin transition into womanhood.[4]
The timing of menarche is influenced by female biology, as well as genetic and environmental factors, especially nutritional factors.[5] The mean age of menarche has declined over the last century, but the magnitude of the decline and the factors responsible remain subjects of contention. The worldwide average age of menarche is very difficult to estimate accurately, and it varies significantly by geographical region, race, ethnicity and other characteristics, and occurs mostly during a span of ages from 8 to 16, with a small percentage of girls having menarche by age 10, and the vast majority having it by the time they were 14.[3]
There is a later age of onset in Asian populations compared to the West, but it too is changing with time. For example a Korean study in 2011 showed an overall average age of 12.7, with around 20% before age 12, and more than 90% by age 14.[6] A Chinese study from 2014 published in Acta Paediatrica showed similar results (overall average of age 12.8 in 2005 down to age 12.3 in 2014) and a similar trend in time, but also similar findings about ethnic, cultural, and environmental effects.[7]
The average age of menarche was about 12.7 years in Canada in 2001,[8] and 12.9 in the United Kingdom.[9] A study of girls in Istanbul, Turkey, in 2011 found the median age at menarche to be 12.7 years.[better source needed][10] In the United States, an analysis of 10,590 women aged 15–44 taken from the 2013–2017 round of the CDC's National Survey of Family Growth
found a median age of 11.9 years (down from 12.1 in 1995), with a mean of 12.5 years (down from 12.6).[11]
^Thomas, F.; Renaud, F.; Benefice, E.; De Meeüs, T.; Guegan, J. F. (2001). "International variability of ages at menarche and menopause: Patterns and main determinants". Human Biology. 73 (2): 271–290. doi:10.1353/hub.2001.0029. PMID 11446429. S2CID 12330919.
^Cherry, Andrew L.; Dillon, Mary E., eds. (2014). International Handbook of Adolescent Pregnancy. doi:10.1007/978-1-4899-8026-7. ISBN 978-1-4899-8025-0. The statistics are dispersed throughout the chapters specific to different countries around the globe, summarized and cited in several scientific papers.
^ abUS National Health Statistics Report, September 2020
^Bobel, C.; Winkler, I. T.; Fahs, B.; Hasson, K. A.; Kissling, E. A.; Roberts, T. A.; Piran, N. (2020). "The Menarche Journey: Embodied Connections and Disconnections". The Palgrave Handbook of Critical Menstruation Studies. pp. 201–214. doi:10.1007/978-981-15-0614-7_18. ISBN 978-981-15-0613-0. PMID 33347201. S2CID 226484326.
^Karapanou O, Papadimitriou A (2010-09-30). "Determinants of menarche". Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology. 8 (1): 115. doi:10.1186/1477-7827-8-115. ISSN 1477-7827. PMC 2958977. PMID 20920296.
^Lee, Mee-Hwa; Kim, Shin Hye; Oh, Minkyung; Lee, Kuk-Wha; Park, Mi-Jung (2016). "Age at menarche in Korean adolescents: Trends and influencing factors". Reproductive Health. 13 (1): 121. doi:10.1186/s12978-016-0240-y. PMC 5035449. PMID 27662834.
^Lei, Yuanting; Luo, Dongmei; Yan, Xiaojin; Zhang, Jingshu; Hu, Peijin; Ma, Jun; Song, Yi; Lau, Patrick W. C. (2021). "The mean age of menarche among Chinese schoolgirls declined by 6 months from 2005 to 2014". Acta Paediatrica. 110 (2): 549–555. doi:10.1111/apa.15441. PMID 32573028. S2CID 219988641.
^Al-Sahab B, Ardern CI, Hamadeh MJ, Tamim H (November 2010). "Age at menarche in Canada: results from the National Longitudinal Survey of Children & Youth". BMC Public Health. 10: 736. doi:10.1186/1471-2458-10-736. PMC 3001737. PMID 21110899.
^Hamilton-Fairley, Diana (2004). Obstetrics and Gynaecology(PDF) (2nd ed.). Blackwell. p. 29. ISBN 978-1-4051-2066-1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-10-09. Retrieved 2013-11-09.
^Atay Z, Turan S, Guran T, Furman A, Bereket A (July 2011). "Puberty and influencing factors in schoolgirls living in Istanbul: end of the secular trend?". Pediatrics. 128 (1): e40–5. doi:10.1542/peds.2010-2267. PMID 21669888. S2CID 24970295.
Menarche (/məˈnɑːrki/ mə-NAR-kee; from Ancient Greek μήν (mēn) 'month', and ἀρχή (arkhē) 'beginning') is the first menstrual cycle, or first menstrual...
complete puberty at ages 16–17. The major landmark of puberty for females is menarche, the onset of menstruation, which occurs on average between ages 12 and...
days. Around day fourteen, an egg is usually released from the ovary. Menarche (the onset of the first period) usually occurs around the age of 12 years...
pubertal timing may be influenced by weight, physical activity, and genetics. Menarche, a central event of female puberty, is associated with the father's absence...
sexual characteristics by age 13 with no menarche or normal secondary sexual characteristics but no menarche by 15 years of age. It may be caused by developmental...
breast tissue occurs during fetal development. Usually, females experience menarche about two years after thelarche has begun, with complete breast development...
body hair growth, breast development and menarche (the onset of menstruation). Most girls go through menarche between ages 12–13, and are then capable...
the first time. It is the celebration of a girl's rite of passage after menarche (first menstruation) or period, and she is deemed a young woman both physically...
pregnancy has not occurred. The first period, a point in time known as menarche, usually begins between the ages of 12 and 15. Menstruation starting as...
13. For females, it is menarche, the onset of menstruation, which occurs, on average, between ages 12 and 13. The age of menarche is influenced by heredity...
pubic hair due to androgen stimulation), peak height velocity, and finally menarche (the onset of menses), which usually occurs around age 12 or 13. Phillips...
her case in the medical journal La Presse Médicale, including that her menarche had occurred at eight months of age, in contrast to previous reports that...
Fertility awareness Menstruation Culture and menstruation Feminine hygiene Menarche Menstrual cycle Menstrual aids Cloth menstrual pad Menstrual cup Tampon...
spontaneous menarche, while 88% with 45,X0/47,XXX (the presence of a trisomy X cell line) experienced spontaneous thelarche and 66% spontaneous menarche. Unexpectedly...
The Tongan archipelago has been inhabited for perhaps 3,000 years, since settlement in late Lapita times. The culture of its inhabitants has surely changed...
11–12 and end around 16–17. The major landmark of puberty for females is menarche, the onset of menstruation, which occurs on average between ages 12 and...
sexual intercourse after she has begun to ovulate. In well-nourished girls, menarche (the first menstrual period) usually takes place around the age of 12 or...
to apply across the continents in the average age of onset of puberty (menarche/first menstruation and beginning of breast development) of girls from the...
Fertility awareness Menstruation Culture and menstruation Feminine hygiene Menarche Menstrual cycle Menstrual aids Cloth menstrual pad Menstrual cup Tampon...
Fertility awareness Menstruation Culture and menstruation Feminine hygiene Menarche Menstrual cycle Menstrual aids Cloth menstrual pad Menstrual cup Tampon...
Fertility awareness Menstruation Culture and menstruation Feminine hygiene Menarche Menstrual cycle Menstrual aids Cloth menstrual pad Menstrual cup Tampon...
measuring hormone levels in the blood or urine. Menopause is the opposite of menarche, the time when a girl's periods start. In the years before menopause, a...
ages 9–12, ending with the major onset of puberty, with markers such as menarche, spermarche, and the peak of height velocity occurring. These changes usually...
Fertility awareness Menstruation Culture and menstruation Feminine hygiene Menarche Menstrual cycle Menstrual aids Cloth menstrual pad Menstrual cup Tampon...
antibacterials. Vaginal secretions serve as a chemical barrier following menarche, when they become slightly acidic, while semen contains defensins and zinc...
often associated with the age of sexual maturity (puberty), especially menarche and spermarche. In others, it is associated with an age of religious responsibility...
Fertility awareness Menstruation Culture and menstruation Feminine hygiene Menarche Menstrual cycle Menstrual aids Cloth menstrual pad Menstrual cup Tampon...
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