HOW WILL I KNOW

[MAMA1965]

MY DAUGHTER IS 8 AND A HALF YEARS OLD WEIGHS 37 KGS AND IS 1M 44CM IN HEIGHT.  I HAVE RECENTLY NOTICED SOME UNDER ARM HAIR AND ,,,A LOT OF BODY ODOUR SINCE LAST YEAR.  ARE THESE SIGNS OF PUBERTY? IF YES SHOULD I DO SOMETHING TO DELAY IT.  I AM AFRAID THAT SHE IS NOT READY TO FACE THE MONTHLY PERIOD HASSLE.  WHEN I TRIED TO INTRODUCE INFO ON MONTHLY PERIOD "SHE DID NOT WANT TO LISTEN".
THANKS

[bummedmom]

I read that girls who start puberty this young are said to have what is called precocious puberty.  I would talk to your doctor about it and have him evaluate her to see if it is precocious puberty.  They may want to do something to delay puberty.

[helperelf]

Usually the first sign of puberty in girls in breast development and then hair growth. But I did read that sometimes kids get hair well before anything else. As for the body odor, buy her some deodorant and make sure she showers daily (preferably in the morning). It's not that unusual - I know of two girls who were the same age as your daughter when they developed body odor. I'm not surprised that she doesn't want to talk about her period. She is probably embarrassed. Buy her a book called "The Care and Keeping of You" and leave it in her room for her to read when she is alone.