Changes in the teen years Flashcards
What is puberty?
puberty—the time when hormones begin to be produced by your body’s endocrine glands
How do hormones cause change during purberty?
These hormones are chemical messengers that affect different tissues of your body and cause a variety of changes, including the development of your reproductive organs.
What is Reproductive maturity?
Reproductive maturity is the state in which the body’s reproductive organs are fully and functionally developed.
What does secondary sex charatersitcs?
secondary sex characteristics, include changes that are specific to males or females and are changes other than the development of reproductive organs.
What are some examples of secondary sex chararterstics?
- girls develop breasts, their hips widen, their waists narrow, and body hair increases.
- Boys develop more body hair, including facial hair, their voices deepen, shoulders become broader, and more muscles develop.
Can secondary sec charatersitcs occur in both boys nad girls?
yes
Some secondary sex characteristics occur in both boys and girls, such as..
an increase in perspiration and production of more skin oils, which can result in acne.
What are the ages puberty starts?
The start of puberty varies greatly and can begin as early as 8 years old and as late as 16 years old.
How long does puberty take to complete?
Puberty takes years to complete.
Which gender usally starts to mature first?
In general, girls usually begin to mature before boys, with many boys not reaching their adult height until their late teens
puberty is influenced by what?
How and when you develop through puberty is influenced by your heredity. You will probably mature in a way similar to how and when your parents matured.
Your brain experiences significant changes before and during puberty like what?
Many more connections between brain cells are formed and new kinds of thinking are now possible for you. You now think more abstractly and about different types of problems and situations. You have greater reasoning skills and can more easily see both sides of a problem. You can consider ideas and possibilities about your world that never occurred to you when you were younger.
But, these same developmental changes can cause emotional changes as well like what?
Changes in the centers of the brain which control emotion and feeling are not quite settled and fully developed during this time. During adolescence, you may feel like you are on an emotional roller coaster—very happy one moment, and miserable the next. You are not alone in having these strong feeling—all teens experience them.
