Learning Curve 14a: Puberty Begins

In the brain, the pituitary gland and a structure called the _____ regulate hormones that affect stress, appetite, and sleep.

hypothalamus

The first visible sign of puberty in boys is:

Growth of testes

In what way does stress affect puberty?

Stress increases the hormones that start puberty.

Bernie is an adult. Unlike teens, Bernie's brain is naturally _____ in the morning and _____ at night.

alert; sleepy

Bill lives in the United States and is the same height as his father and grandfather. The same is true for many other generations of families. The secular trend of each generation growing taller:

appears to have stopped in developed nations.

In girls, the adolescent growth spurt generally begins _____ menarche. In boys, the growth spurt usually begins _____ spermarche.

before; after

The current average age of menarche among well-nourished girls is:

12 years, 4 months.

Mary is a fifth-grader and is starting to eat more food each day. The hormone that affects Mary's appetite and is believed to affect the onset of puberty is _____.

leptin

Jojo recently had her first menstrual period, called:

menarche.

Sexual development before age 8 is referred to as:

precocious puberty

Chad noticed that his testes had grown. This is the first visible sign of _____ in boys.

puberty

Melinda had four years of rapid physical growth and sexual maturation during her high school years, ending her childhood. This is called:

puberty

As Charles was drying himself off after taking a shower, he noticed that his _____ had grown, which is the first visible sign of puberty in boys.

testes