Early Puberty Tops List of Surprising Obesity Effects

Nov. 5, 2013— -- intro: American girls are hitting puberty sooner, according to a new study that suggests obesity could be driving the early development.

The study of more than 1,200 girls found that the median age of breast development ranged from 8.8 to 9.7 years, depending on race, with heavier girls developing breasts sooner than their thinner counterparts.

"Girls with earlier maturation are at risk for lower self-esteem and higher rates of depression," the study authors wrote in their report, published Monday in the journal Pediatrics. "They are more likely to be influenced by older peers and more deviant peers, and initiate intercourse, substance use and other norm-breaking behaviors at younger ages."

Childhood obesity has more than doubled in the past 30 years, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, rising from 7 percent in 1980 to 18 percent in 2010. More than one-third of children and teens are now overweight or obese. And the problem only gets worse. More than two-thirds of American adults are overweight or obese, according to the CDC.

While these statistics are quoted so often that they make most people's eyes glaze over, the effects of obesity reach far beyond clothing size and cardiovascular health. Obesity can affect family relationships and income, too.

Read on to learn about eight other ways carrying those extra pounds may influence the way you live.

quicklist: 1category: Surprising Effects of Obesitytitle: More Migrainesurl:text: A study published in the journal Neurology revealed what a real headache extra weight can be. Johns Hopkins researchers surveyed nearly 4,000 people to find that the higher their body mass index, the greater their chances were of having episodic migraines. Those who were obese were 81 percent more likely to experience at least 14 migraine headaches each month compared with people who were a healthy weight. Obese women over the age of 50 suffered from chronic headaches the most.

quicklist: 2category: Surprising Effects of Obesitytitle: More Cancerurl:text: The National Cancer Institute associates 34,000 new cases of cancer in men and 50,000 in women each year with obesity.

Right now the link between excess weight and cancer is purely circumstantial and not necessarily cause-and-effect, but experts have floated some theories about why more body fat tracks with higher rates of cancer.

"It could be that excess fat cells increase hormonal activity or they increase growth factors that lead to tumor growth," said Dr. Raul Seballos, vice chairman of preventive medicine at the Cleveland Clinic.

Obese people are at higher risk for all cancers, Seballos said. They are often diagnosed in later stages of cancer than thinner people and are more likely to die from the disease. Some emerging data looking at weight-loss surgery patients suggest that some of this risk can be diminished by losing weight.

quicklist: 3Category: Surprising Effects of ObesityTitle: Infertility Increasesurl:text: Overweight women have a harder time getting pregnant. One Indian study of 300 morbidly obese women found that more than 90 percent of them developed polycystic ovarian disease, a condition associated with infertility, over a three-year period.

As with cancer, the association between obesity and infertility isn't entirely clear.