Menarche age and satisfaction with body weight

Abstract

This study aims to characterize sexual maturation through menarcheal age and the level of satisfaction with body mass, in students studying at public schools in Florianopolis and adjoining areas of the State of Santa Catarina, Brazil. The research project enrolled 1070 students of puberty age from 33 schools in 11 different towns. Menarcheal age (MA) was determined using the retrospective method and converted into decimal age. Results demonstrated that mean MA was 12.56 years of age median MA was 12.54 years. Adolescents with earliest and latest sexual maturation were 9.11 and 15.63 years of age, respectively. 51.8% of the adolescents were satisfi ed with their body mass and 48.2% were unsatisfi ed. The stated reasons for the dissatisfaction were : 1st – 74.2% of the adolescents believed they were overweight and would like to lose some weight. 2nd – 20.2% believed they were underweight and would like to put some on. 3rd – 5.6% described reasons of an aesthetic nature. Analysis of the results suggests the following conclusions: a) The mean MA of these students from Santa Catarina state public schools was 12.56 years of age; b) Those students who were not happy with their body mass and wished to lose weight had matured earlier, which was exactly the opposite of those students who were satisfi ed; c) There was a tendency towards later MA when students came from larger families, smaller towns and lower socioeconomic classes; d) There is a tendency towards earlier MA when students come from smaller families, bigger towns and higher social classes.