Body Weight and the Initiation of Puberty

The onset and progression through the various stages of puberty are influenced by a number of factors (Fig. 2). In both animals and humans, the age of puberty appears to be related more to body weight than to chronologic age. Undernutrition and low body fat, or an altered ratio of lean mass to body fat, seem to delay the adolescent spurt and to retard the onset of menarche. According to Frisch, a minimum level of fatness (17% of body weight) is associated with menarche; however, a heavier minimum weight for height, representing an increased amount of body fat (22%), appears necessary for the onset and maintenance of regular menstrual cycles in girls over 16 years of age. This critical amount of body fat implies that a particular body composition, in addition to other environmental and psychosocial factors, is important in triggering and maintaining the pubertal process.