Scientists Have Linked Early Onset Menstruation With Depression
Style Magazine Newswire | 1/5/2018, 8:25 a.m.
Source: BlackNews.com
Recent studies show that African-American girls are at greater risk for depression at an earlier age and depression can last longer into adulthood. How? The studies show a strong link between African-American girls, who start menstruating earlier than white girls, and the onset of depression. According to information from the Pediatric Research in Office Settings, the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, and the Bogalusa Heart Study, African-American girls often start menstruating anywhere from a few months to almost a year sooner than white girls. As a result, they are at greater risk for depression. Why? Girls who reach puberty at an earlier age are more likely to be exposed to trauma, stress, and bullying, which can cause disruptions in cortisol and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, placing them at higher risk for the development of depressive disorders,” explains Dr. Erikka Dzirasa, a child and adolescent psychiatrist in private practice in Durham, N.C.
