age when girls start period
A woman's period may not be the same every month, and it may not be the same as other women's periods. Periods can be light, moderate, or heavy, and the length of the period also varies. While most menstrual periods last from three to five days, anywhere from two to seven days is considered normal. For the first few years after menstruation begins, periods may be very irregular. Most girls start their periods when they're about 12, but they can start as early as 8, so it's important to talk to girls from an early age to make sure they're prepared before the big day. Many parents feel awkward talking about periods, especially with pre-teen girls, who can seem to get easily embarrassed. Girls are 12-13 years old, on average, when they get their first menstrual period (menarche), the committees note. That average age hasn't changed much in 30 years, though black girls go through menarche five months earlier than they did 30 years ago, according to the committees. A menstrual cycle lasts from the first day of a girl's period until the first day of her next period. During the early years of menstruation, girls usually have medium menstrual flow; most report changing a pad approximately three to six times a day, according to the report. You know, I'm not sure what the world record is for youngest person to start her period -- but I do know there's a huge range. I know girls who started at age 8 or 9 and girls who started at age 15 or 16. I got mine somewhere in the middle -- at age 13. When your first period arrives it might not last very long, as it can take your body some months to get into a regular pattern. As a general rule, once they're settled, you'll have a period every 28 to 30 days and it will last three to seven days. Menarche is another name for the beginning of menstruation. In the United States, the average age a girl starts menstruating is 12. However, this does not mean that all girls start at the same age. A girl can begin menstruating anytime between the ages of 8 and 16. The mother of one 8-year-old wrote that her daughter “is a very sexual being. In girls, puberty is commonly defined as breast development, growth of pubic hair and menarche, the beginning of the menstrual cycle. At the turn of the 20th century, the average age for an American girl to get her period was 16 to 17. Today, that number has plummeted to less than 13, according to data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Parents often ask me when the right age to talk to girls about starting periods is, and I recommend that it should be an ongoing process rather than a formal sit-down talk. You can use TV ads for tampons, or buying sanitary towels at the supermarket, for example, to start the conversation with girls about periods. Most girls get their periods somewhere between the ages of 9 and 16. But it's not unheard of for a girl's period to start before age 9. Rather than age, you can look for signals in your body. Most girls don't get their period until they weigh at least 100 pounds and have started developing breasts.
Between the ages of 9 and 16.