Adrenarchy
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Adrenarche is a term that refers to a stage of puberty involving the adrenal glands, typically occurring before the more commonly recognized puberty associated with reproductive maturation. During adrenarche, the adrenal glands begin to produce androgens, which leads to the development of secondary sexual characteristics such as pubic and underarm hair, and also contributes to body odor development.
Dr. Kyle Gillett explains that adrenarche is essentially the second activation of the adrenals in one's life, initially observed in the first three months after birth when androgens increase and cause changes like oilier skin and genital growth due to DHEA, an adrenal hormone. The more familiar puberty phase involves similar adrenal activation, leading to growth changes and sexual maturation 1.
Additionally, and Dr. Natalie Crawford discuss that adrenarche usually precedes the development of breast buds in females and occurs two to three years before the onset of menstruation, correlating with the appearance of sexual hair 2.
For further details, you can listen to these discussions in the episode clips.
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