Timing of puberty ‘can have impact health in later life’

The age at which a person begins puberty can have a major influence on their risk of various health conditions in later life.

This is according to a new report from the Medical Research Council (MRC) Epidemiology Unit at the University of Cambridge, which evaluated data from around half a million people taking part in the UK Biobank study.

It was found that the timing of puberty was associated with 48 different health conditions, including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, irritable bowel syndrome, arthritis, glaucoma, psoriasis and depression, in both men and women.

Those in the earliest or latest 20 percent to go through puberty had higher risks for late-life disease when compared to those in the middle 20 percent, including a 50 percent higher relative risk for type 2 diabetes, heart disease and poor overall health.

It was previously thought that only those individuals with relatively early puberty were more susceptible to a handful of specific diseases.

Dr Felix Day, lead author of the study at the MRC Epidemiology Unit, said: "Though a study of this kind cannot distinguish between cause and effect, other evidence does point to a causal link between puberty and certain diseases, such as type 2 diabetes."