PHYSICAL ACTIVITY LEVELS AND MATURATION IN ADOLESCENT FEMALES

Abstract

It is known that elite women athletes have a delayed menarche compared to nonathletic women (Malina et al., 1978; Moisan et al., 1991). In contrast, little is know whether physical activity levels in general have an effect on sexual maturation in female adolescents who are not highly trained athletes. PURPOSE: This study determined the effect of physical activity level on sexual maturation in 1267 girls, aged 11 to 16 yr. METHODS: Height, weight, and sum of skinfolds (triceps+subscapular) were measured on each girl. Physical activity levels and Tanner Stage (1 to 5) of sexual maturation were assessed by questionnaires. The girls were then divided into tertiles by PA score. RESULTS: The most active tertile had lower weights, BMIs, and sum of skinfolds than the least active tertile (p < 0.01). ANCOVA analyses compared the most and least active tertiles and were adjusted for either BMI or sum of skinfolds. The results indicated that the mean Tanner Stage of the most active tertile was lower than for the least active tertile (3.9 vs. 3.4, p = 0.0001). Correlations between PA score and Tanner Stage at each age were low (r = −0.11 to −0.34), but significant (p < 0.02). CONCLUSION: These results indicate that in a large sample of adolescent females, none of which were elite athletes, increased physical activity levels were associated with an earlier Tanner Stage of sexual development at any age. Funded by NINR grant #R01837