Real Family Loves the Way You Are Fat Ugly Gaps in Your Teeth Quotes

Qual Health Res. Writer manuscript; bachelor in PMC 2011 Sep 30.

Published in terminal edited form equally:

PMCID: PMC3183834

NIHMSID: NIHMS315751

Pubertal Development in Mexican American Girls: The Family'due south Perspective

Rosenie Thelus Jean, MPH, Predoctoral fellow, Melissa 50. Bondy, PhD, Professor, Anna 5. Wilkinson, PhD, Banana professor, and Michele R. Forman, PhD, Professor

Rosenie Thelus Jean

University of Texas, M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, USA

Melissa L. Bondy

University of Texas, Thousand. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, USA

Anna V. Wilkinson

University of Texas, M. D. Anderson Cancer Middle in Houston, Texas, USA

Michele R. Forman

Academy of Texas, Thou. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, U.s.a.

Abstract

Mexican American (MA) girls are entering puberty earlier than in the past, yet few studies have explored the perceptions surrounding puberty among this group. Nosotros conducted separate focus groups for fathers, mothers, and daughters aged half-dozen to 12 years to explore perceptions of body prototype, pubertal development, communications, and sources of puberty-related information in MA participants. Our results revealed parental concerns about daughters' weight and pubertal development, likewise as differences in their communication with their daughters. Although both parents willingly discussed pubertal issues concerning their daughters, mothers had a more than agile office in conveying pubertal data to daughters. Among the girls, in that location was a gap in cognition about the pubertal process between the younger and older girls. Our findings present opportunities and challenges for addressing obesity as a pubertal risk cistron in MA girls; all the same, more than studies are needed to empathize family beliefs and sociocultural dynamics surrounding puberty in MAs.

Keywords: adolescents, female, body paradigm, families, fathers, focus groups, Mexican Americans, relationships, mother–kid, women's health, immature women

The onset of puberty is a pregnant milestone for young girls in the transition from childhood to womanhood. For most girls, this period is marked by ambiguity, fear, and frustration; for parents, it is a time of struggle, perplexity, and changes in their relationships with their daughters (Doswell & Vandestienne, 1996; Graber, Seeley, Brooks-Gunn, & Lewinsohn, 2004; Siegel, Yancey, Aneshensel, & Schuler, 1999). Information from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) suggest that Mexican American (MA) girls in particular enter puberty even earlier than their not-Hispanic White (NHW) peers (Himes, 2006; Sunday et al., 2002). Additionally, several studies take shown that girls who mature earlier than their peers tend to have lower self-esteem, and initiate alcohol utilize and sexual practice at an earlier age (Caspi & Moffitt, 1991; Costello, Sung, Worthman, & Angold, 2007; Doswell & Vandestienne, 1996)

Social and emotional problems encountered during puberty might be mediated past parental guidance and social back up. Girls who receive parental communication and insight about puberty are more likely to experience pubertal changes with less fear, shame, and dysfunction than those without parental support (Teitelman, 2004). Although many studies have captured the cultural, social, and emotional factors affecting the perceptions of puberty by immature women, the literature describing MA girls' perceptions of puberty remains express in scope (Beausang & Razor, 2000; Bratberg, Nilsen, Holmen, & Vatten, 2005; Cachelin, Monreal, & Juarez, 2006; Ellis, 2004; Huerta & Brizuela-Gamino, 2002; O'Sullivan, Meyer-Balhburg, & Watkins, 2000). Additionally, to our noesis, familial attitudes toward such changes in the context of the MA customs have not been reported.

In this study we sought to elucidate the perception almost puberty in the MA female parent–father–daughter triad by conducting focus groups examining perceptions of trunk image, pubertal development, interaction dynamics, and sources of puberty-related information. Outset, we evaluated parental perceptions of their daughters' wellness, body prototype, body size, and pubertal evolution in conjunction with the daughters' perceptions of these factors. Second, we explored the communication and interaction dynamics related to the in a higher place-mentioned factors in the parent–daughter dyads. Finally, nosotros identified the sources of data used by parents to educate their daughters virtually puberty and those used past daughters to formulate body epitome and beliefs about pubertal development. Although our aims were exploratory in nature, the results provide important information with implications for public health interventions incorporating a family unit-based arroyo to agreement and addressing sociocultural dynamics surrounding puberty amongst MA girls.

Background

Puberty is characterized by Stage 2 of five distinct stages of chest and pubic pilus evolution. On average, girls enter puberty nigh two to 3 years prior to menarche. In the U.s.a., the average historic period at onset of puberty in girls is ten.5 years, whereas the onset of menarche occurs at 12.8 years (Pinyerd & Zipf, 2005). Based on national data from 1988 to 1994, the number of 10- to 11-year-old MA girls classified every bit Phase 2+ has significantly increased over time, from forty% to 70% for breast development and from 24% to 62% (p < .05) for pubic hair development, respectively (Sun et al., 2005). This charge per unit of increase of MA girls is faster than the rate of NHW girls.

According to Doswell, Millor, Thompson, and Braxter (1998), body paradigm is "an individual's mental representation of his/her body." Notwithstanding, the concept of body image is likewise influenced and shaped by values and experiences of family unit, friends, and the media, as well equally ane's cultural groundwork (Cachelin et al., 2006; Snooks & Hall, 2002). For prepubertal and peripubertal girls, torso prototype plays an important office in mental health and emotional well-beingness. Early on pubertal timing can potentially alter a girl's mental representation of her body by perpetuating negative feelings nearly her body image and self-esteem brought on by physical changes such as weight gain and premature development of secondary sexual characteristics. In fact, both early pubertal timing and weight proceeds have been associated with a higher prevalence of depressive symptoms and negative body epitome among young girls (Huerta & Brizuela-Gamino, 2002; Siegel et al., 1999; Tremblay & Frigon, 2005). Furthermore, girls who matured earlier than their peers were significantly more probable to written report dissatisfaction with their body epitome than those who matured at the aforementioned time every bit their peers (Michaud, Suris, & Deppen, 2006).

Contempo epidemiological studies have indicated that the secular trend in increasing body mass index is strongly associated with an before age at puberty, and accept implicated these findings in the continuum of the life course of breast cancer (De Assis & Hilakivi-Clarke, 2006; Hodgson, Newman, & Millikan, 2004; Lof, Sandin, Hilakivi-Clarke, & Weiderpass, 2007; Michels & Xue, 2006). Therefore, overnourishment might be responsible for triggering the earlier age of onset of puberty among girls (Karlberg, 2002; Wattigney, Srinivasan, Chen, Greenlund, & Berenson, 1999). With more than 22% of MA children at risk for overweight, the potential for negative health outcomes, psychological bug, and emotional disorders requires special attending, peculiarly among girls who are maturing early (Flegal, Ogden, & Carroll, 2004; Hernandez-Valero et al., 2007).

During puberty, girls experience a shift in their social surround marked by increasing psychosocial conflicts with family unit, peers, and potency figures (Remschmidt, 1994). Girls experiencing earlier pubertal onset are more than likely to report having emotional problems and to appoint in loftier-risk behaviors, such equally smoking and early initiation of sexual activity, compared with their peers (Ellis, 2004). Consequently, assistance-seeking behaviors, social dynamics, and emotional well-being of these adolescents tend to be lower compared to those who experience later pubertal onset (Offering, Howard, Schonert, & Ostrov, 1991; Siegel et al., 1999). Although some adolescents experiencing emotional issues tend to withdraw into themselves, more 75% reported discussing their bug with their peers and 55% reported discussing their bug with parents (Offering et al., 1991). Therefore, communication with parents and peers might play a part in providing the social support that helps adolescents finer transition into adulthood.

Cultural dynamics have been reported to play a function in the perception of trunk epitome and puberty among women of various ethnic backgrounds (Olvera, Suminski, & Power, 2005; Skandhan, Pandya, Skandhan, & Mehta, 1988; Snooks & Hall, 2002). In near cultures, girls ordinarily plow to their mothers or a female caretaker as their primary source of such data. In terms of puberty, mothers' perceptions seem to influence daughters' perceived experiences such that a negative view of puberty presented by the mother will likely result in similar views on the part of the daughter (Marvan, Vacio, Garcia-Yanez, & Espinosa-Hernandez, 2007). As a effect, this mother–girl relationship has the potential to negatively influence how daughters perceive their trunk image and puberty. Conversely, assimilation into a new civilisation tin modify the influence of the mother–daughter relationship (Saracho & Spodek, 2008). For example, Hispanic women tend to regard as platonic a heavier torso weight than NHWs, and exhibit less trunk dissatisfaction, whereas MA girls with a greater level of assimilation adopt a thinner trunk size as their ideal than those with less acculturation (Olvera et al., 2005).

Unlike mother–daughter relationships during adolescence, less is known near the influence of the male parent's view on his daughter's perception of puberty. Kalman (2003) reported that female person adolescents who lived with their fathers as a main caretaker believed that their fathers lacked brownie regarding pubertal bug, and were embarrassed to discuss such information with their fathers. Recently, Saracho and Spodek (2008) presented a review exploring the complexity of MA fathers, suggesting that MA fathers play a central role in the family's determination-making procedure and that research excluding fathers could be missing crucial elements of fathers' involvement and influence in their children's lives.

Studies describing sexual growth and development tend to address women'southward attitudes toward and perceptions of menarche, rather than puberty, and are express by their retrospective design based on lengthy recall. Furthermore, the perceptions of puberty and body image in MA mother–male parent–daughter triads—and interrelated cultural factors—accept not been investigated. To our knowledge, no report has assessed parental involvement in educating MA daughters about puberty, nor accept the dynamics of MA parent–daughter relationships during this period been explored. Therefore, as part of a larger study on factors influencing the historic period of onset of puberty amid MA girls, we conducted focus groups with girls aged 6 to12 years and their parents to evaluate the perceptions of and communications about puberty amid MA families.

Methods

Participants and Procedures

Mothers, fathers, and daughters were recruited for this report from the Mano a Mano (mitt to hand) cohort (MMC), a population-based infrastructure (a prospective accomplice) of lower socioeconomic status Mexican American households developed and maintained by the Department of Epidemiology at the Academy of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas start in July 2001. A description and enrollment methodology for the cohort have been previously published (Wilkinson et al., 2005). After institutional review board approval, a list of eligible participants was generated from the MMC database. From this listing, an MMC staff member who had prior contact with the families called mothers of girls anile 6 to 12 years and asked whether they and their daughters would be interested in participating in a focus group about growth and evolution. All mothers were also asked whether the father of the child would like to participate in the study. Both parents could participate if they had a daughter between the ages of 6 and 12 years; however, attendance of female parent–male parent dyads was not a required criterion for participation. Once participants agreed to join the focus grouping, follow-up phone calls were made to ostend omnipresence.

Focus groups

Iii sets of focus groups were conducted over the course of the study, with a total of 37 participants (eight fathers, 13 mothers, and xvi daughters). All focus groups were conducted separately for mothers, fathers, and daughters. Each set of focus groups was conducted on Saturday mornings for approximately i to ane.5 hours at a location user-friendly to the participants. Transportation was provided for those who did not have a car. At the stop of the focus groups, parents received a pocket-sized budgetary compensation for their time, and each girl received a doll of her pick.

Figure 1 presents a delineation of recruitment results, showing mothers equally our chief unit of measurement of recruitment. A total of 59 eligible mothers were contacted to participate in the study, of whom 48 agreed to participate in the focus group activities with their daughters; simply 13 mothers actually attended the focus groups. Compared with the mothers, fewer fathers (n = viii) agreed to participate, mainly considering of their work obligations on the weekends. One of the fathers who participated identified himself every bit a widower during the focus grouping. Sixteen girls took part in the focus group activities, two of whom were sisters and i who came from a single-parent household. Our high nonresponse rate was mainly attributed to cancellations the solar day of the focus group considering of family unit emergencies and work obligations for both mothers and fathers.

Recruitment of Family Triads

Experienced bilingual women and men moderated the mother and father focus groups, respectively. Too, an experienced moderator and an unproblematic school instructor were in charge of the girls' discussions. Comoderators were present to assist in taking notes and recording focus grouping activities. Additionally, a record recorder was used to record the focus group discussions. The parental focus groups were guided by a set of pretested questions (hereafter referred to as the "guidelines"), whereas the daughters' focus groups were intentionally less structured to encourage conversational flow among the girls. Prior to starting each focus group session, the chief investigator (PI) explained the purpose and protocol of the study, and all participating parents gave their informed consent and the girls gave their assent to participate.

Parental focus groups

All parental focus groups were conducted separately for mothers and fathers, and discussions were in Spanish. The guidelines for both sets of parents were divided into four sections that primarily addressed questions regarding the daughters. The kickoff department addressed the parents' perceptions of their ain health and body size and that of their daughters. Additionally, mothers were asked to describe their puberty experience when they were younger. The second and tertiary sections transitioned into parental perceptions of their daughters' pubertal development. Finally, the concluding section examined sources of information with which parents educated their daughters about torso epitome, body size, and puberty.

Daughters' focus groups

Focus grouping sessions for the girls were in both English language and Spanish, based on the girls' preferences, and were loosely structured to contain arts and crafts activities. Each focus group started with the girls making posters of their favorite activities and discussing typical daily activities and interactions with friends. Later the moderators had established a level of condolement within the focus group, the girls were asked how their bodies had inverse and then far, how they would continue to change, and what they thought about such changes. Several sets of pictures were presented to foster discussions about health, body size, and body image. The girls were besides asked to discuss their relationships and interactions with their mothers or others who served as female person part models.

During the second half of the discussion, the girls were separated into ii age groups: 6- to ix-year-olds and ten- to 12-year-olds. First, the moderators gauged the younger girls' level of cognition with a question about whether they had heard the word "puberty." If and then, the moderator proceeded with the next set of questions about signs of puberty and how the girls knew their bodies were changing. If the girls indicated that they were not familiar with the word puberty, the moderator briefly defined puberty and proceeded to the side by side set of questions. For girls aged 10 years or older, like questions were posed in more than detail.

Information Analysis

Moderators and a research assistant provided a summary and a verbatim transcript from each focus group. Spanish-linguistic communication transcripts were so translated into English language by a enquiry assistant fluent in both languages. Furthermore, the accuracy of the translation was confirmed by each of the moderators. These transcripts and summaries, combined with notes taken by the PI and the first author, were synthesized for the purposes of this article. Starting with the questions in the guidelines, we collected relevant information from reading the summaries, transcripts, and notes to analyze the results from each set of focus group sessions. We analyzed responses to the guideline questions from each focus group separately, and identified common issues that emerged in the context of previously known data. Later, in-depth analysis of the focus group data identified similarities and differences in themes assessed by each researcher across all focus groups. Moderators and researchers met several times to compare and contrast the content that each had included in his or her cess of relevant data on a topic. Conclusions and analyses that were dissimilar from one researcher to some other were discussed in a group setting until a consensus was reached. Subsequently reaching a consensus on the emergent themes, we summarized the salient points from each focus group discussion.

Results

Most of the parents in our sample were born in Mexico and had less than a high schoolhouse education. The mean ages for the mothers and fathers were 34.8 years and 38.5 years, respectively. Fifty-fifty though near of the mothers and fathers indicated that they had lived in the Us for more a decade, they preferred to speak, watch television receiver, heed to the radio, and read in Spanish. On the other hand, all of the girls (ranging in age from 6 to12 years, with a mean age of vii.94 years) were born in the U.s.a. and could communicate in both English and Spanish. Throughout the focus group discussions, the younger girls seemed more comfy with Spanish, whereas the older ones preferred English as their primary linguistic communication of communication; this was likely a function of years in school and peer influence.

Parental Perceptions

Health and trunk size

The majority of the parents expressed contentment and felt comfortable with their weight, whereas a few stated at that place was room for improvement. With regard to their daughters' health and body sizes, fathers were conscientious to avoid portraying their daughters in a negative calorie-free, whereas few mothers verbalized any concerns about their girl'due south height and weight. Of all the mothers, only one expressed the belief that her daughter was not very healthy because the doctor had put the child on a diet. The remainder of the mothers thought that their daughters were salubrious irrespective of their body size.

Fathers and mothers openly discussed the biological and social impact of being overweight or underweight. I father explained that existence "likewise skinny" could bear upon the immune organisation, whereas being overweight could affect a child's heart and foreclose her from participating in sports because she would tire faster than thinner girls. Furthermore, some fathers expressed that overweight girls would suffer from more than emotional problems and early pubertal evolution than would those who were not overweight. One begetter stated, "If a young girl is overweight, she tends to develop more than rapidly—her hormones piece of work harder, and [she has] body discharge and breast evolution too early."

Similarly, several mothers explained that beingness either too thin or overweight could equally result in health consequences, teasing, and criticism. Two mothers mirrored some of the fathers' thoughts, with one female parent saying, "When they [the girls] are overweight, they develop faster than when they are thinner." The other mother agreed, saying, "I recollect the same, because my daughter is thin and I don't meet her developing. Other girls in her form are taller and are growing faster because of their weight."

In general, fathers and mothers thought that their respective daughter'south weight and height were normal, even when the daughters themselves expressed insecurity about their height and weight in comparing to that of their peers. Although some of the mothers thought that their daughters were slightly bigger than average, they did not recollect the girls needed to lose weight. Listed in Table 1 are various concerns expressed by some fathers and mothers about their corresponding daughter'southward wellness.

Table ane

Selected Questions and Responses Involving Parental Perceptions

Topics	Questions	Quotes
		Mothers	Fathers
Wellness and trunk size	Exercise you retrieve your daughter'southward body is healthy? Why? Why not?	"Well, my [daughter] is a petty bit big, because fifty-fifty the doctor told me that she needed to lose a picayune chip of weight. … Right now she weighs xc pounds and he told me [referring to the daughter] to lose weight. He didn't tell how much, simply he did tell me [she needs] to lose some weight."	"I think she is, well … she is not obese. She might be a little overweight, only she is controlling herself." "She is not fat because she has big cheeks. All of them [kids at school] tell her that she is fat … [but] she has a good weight for me." "I thought it was a lot, seventy pounds. I didn't desire to say anything, because she'due south going to grow. If the doc tells me that I have to remove food … how will I do this?"
Pubertal development	How does it make you lot feel to know that your daughter's body is irresolute? In what means are you lot seeing your daughter'south body change as she gets older? Do y'all talk with her about information technology? Do you have books to refer her to?	"I tell my girl that information technology is all normal and she has to go through certain stages in life. I have talked to her about it. The other 24-hour interval, not besides long agone, a daughter at school the same age every bit my daughter was scared, because she sat down and she had … [bleeding] … and and then my daughter told her that I said it was normal. She thought she had cutting her legs. Her mom never told her about that." "I do tell her to calm downward considering it'southward the age [of puberty] and everybody says so; I have one [friend] that tells me, 'No, no, right at present is not the time to tell her [almost puberty].' They say that we talk to them and they explode [get upset]." "Well, I started to tell her [before]; this [menses] is going to be every month. You have to be careful. You need to start checking on what twenty-four hours [to expect menses] and everything."	"I see that she is changing a lot. Every time I run across her, [she is] more than like a senorita. Older per se … I feel happy—at the same time, worried—considering the older they become, the more than problems." "Well, I feel expert. I feel happy because equally the years pass by, well … they are not girls anymore. They cease being girls; then comes another pace. It's non the same. Nowadays, the girls become senoritas at a immature age." "It'due south [their interaction with their daughter] not the same … it is dissimilar than when she was 2 or 3 years onetime…. I used to play with her a lot earlier and now, with me … I can't … and it doesn't look correct."

Pubertal Development

To broach the bailiwick of puberty, the fathers were asked whether they had seen changes in their daughters' bodies and how they felt about those changes. Some of the fathers expressed happiness with their daughters becoming young women, but many worried about the pace at which the girls were developing. In contrast, the mothers were asked whether they talked to their daughters well-nigh puberty, and the age at which they thought it appropriate to exercise and then. A majority of the mothers said they were comfortable talking to their daughters about puberty, given that the girls had begun to prove signs of puberty or had straight asked a question about the topic. The mothers of the younger daughters did not ever feel comfortable talking virtually puberty with their daughters, and differed on the appropriate historic period for the word and how to approach the topic with the girls. The differences of opinion between the mothers and fathers are too listed in Tabular array 1.

Father–girl interaction and advice dynamics

Fathers were asked whether they communicated direct with their daughters or through their wives. All fathers except two mentioned that they talked to their spouses about all problems concerning their daughter's body weight, growth, and attire; very few communicated directly with their daughters. Some fathers explained that they were more "hands-off" when it came to discussing puberty with their daughters, and that the mothers were responsible for addressing these issues with the girls. However, about half the fathers, including a widower, said they played a very agile role in communicating with their daughters about their daughters' development. One father, explaining the importance of the father–daughter relationship, stated the following:

I believe that [knowing your children]; that is where you avoid any bug. When we don't know our own children … and when nosotros leave the father stuff for the mother and everything, that is where the problem is…. Well, how am I going to know if my daughter has an infection there and she never tells me because I am her father? If my girl has an infection, she comes and tells me, "Y'all know, my part hurts and I have this." Because she trusts you. If she tells the mother and the mother is irresponsible and the begetter does not know and the female parent just leaves it there … I believe each i of us is responsible for our children, mother and father, equally. That is the style I see it.

Two other fathers went on to explicate how having a relationship with their daughters provided an environment of trust and comfort for the girls, calculation:

We are always going to exist their fathers and they have to trust and talk to u.s. well-nigh annihilation. Me, at least, that is what I have instilled in them. Whatsoever problem they have, whatever it is … for them to come up and talk to me and, aye … with them, well, y'all know [it] is for their ain skillful.

[Menarche] is an added expense. What I mean is, if there is something that they demand, I buy information technology for them, whatever it is. There are 3 ladies [in my household]. Now, for everything, we take to buy pads. For example, buying i for her and one for your wife is a lot. But for u.s.a., information technology was 2 cases at the same time. Information technology's e'er more expensive. That is part of their physique, right? What can y'all say? "Don't ask, girls. Don't ask your father because information technology's embarrassing?" If they tell y'all, "I demand them because my period is coming," I go and I bring it to them. I am not embarrassed to become to the store to purchase them, because that was the style I was brought up. It's something normal.

When asked whether they participated in any activities with their daughters, most of the fathers mentioned spending time with their daughters walking, playing sports, and reading to them. Nonetheless, they expressed regrets about not having more fourth dimension to interact with the girls and play a more agile part in their lives considering of work obligations.

Mother–daughter interaction and communication dynamics

Unlike the fathers, mothers seemed to benefit from a greater level of interaction with the girls. In many circumstances, they served every bit the primary source of information for the girls regarding pubertal changes. At the same time, they served every bit a liaison, relaying information about the daughter to the begetter. In full general, the mothers were comfortable discussing the topic of puberty with their daughters, especially if the girl initiated the conversation; several of them explained how they talked to their daughters about what was presently to happen to the girls' bodies. Still, some mothers chose to wait until menarche really began, or chose to leave pubertal education entirely up to the schoolhouse, an older sister, or an aunt. A subset of the mothers expressed that they did not recall they were ready to broach the issue with their daughters, stating the following opinions:

Well, my girl is young and … she is 8 years former. About a month ago, she was lying downwardly and she told me, "Come over here mom!" and I say, "Yes." She says, "Mom, when am I going to be big?" [referring to breast development]. And I tell her, "When time passes past, because right now, you are barely 8 years sometime." And so she says, "I desire to tell you lot something." I ask her, "What?" She told me, "It's considering my friend has a lot of this surface area [breast development] and I also want information technology." I tell her, "No, subsequently you lot are going to get some…. You're nonetheless a little girl." And she starts laughing. And and then, she tells me, "Mom, when am I going to be a lady?" I tell her, "When time passes by." Information technology'southward like she has a lot of discomfort because she is always asking me, "Mom this" and "Mom that." And sometimes she tells me, "You get mad considering I tell you?" And I tell her, "No, [daughter's proper name], on the reverse, I want you to ask me. Yeah."

Well, I don't know if she knows … I hardly ever talk to her. She just goes to schoolhouse, to church building, and sometimes she goes out with friends and I become pick her upward. Only she really doesn't ask me anything and I don't bring information technology up either.

Other mothers who mentioned discomfort discussing pubertal issues with their daughters expressed not feeling comfortable, secure, or educated enough to talk to the girls almost puberty. Conversely, two mothers who had taken a grade offered through their community middle explained that they were somewhat more comfortable in talking to their daughters because the class taught them how to explain pubertal evolution to girls in a way the girls could understand.

Mothers' experiences during puberty

In addition to communications well-nigh pubertal growth with their own daughters, the mothers were asked to recall their own pubertal experiences and to describe the relationship they had with their mothers during that time, too as the sources of information they had most puberty. Several mothers recalled difficulty going through puberty; some recounted non knowing what would happen to their bodies and others recalled embarrassment.

Most mothers reported having a somewhat strained human relationship with their ain mothers during puberty considering they did not feel comfortable talking to them about the changes in their bodies. But two of the mothers named their mothers as the primary source of their education virtually puberty. Some had mothers who did not talk to them most puberty until after their kickoff catamenia had occurred. For others, the advice that took place was superficial, at best. Some mothers recalled learning what they needed to know from a close friend or relative. Below are personal accounts of three mothers' experiences of pubertal development:

I was shy, I was ever putting on sweaters, so they [people] wouldn't see me. When they [breasts] were growing a picayune bit, I was always covering myself because I didn't want everyone to see me.

Well, later on it happened to me, she just told me to be careful and endeavor to place whatever you put on correctly. If not, you are going to embarrass yourself. After that, she would tell me she regretted not preparing me for it. She never talked to us.

Well, look, my parents never told me anything. I plant out through my cousins that were older than me. And they told me, "This is going to happen and this is going to happen." And when I became a lady, I likewise was very young—almost 10—and I already knew.

Sources of information about daughters' pubertal development

About parents indicated that they learned of their daughter's evolution mainly through ascertainment and, sometimes, by talking to them. In terms of resource used to brainwash their daughters, about mothers based their advice on experience; some of the mothers mentioned classes that were offered through their community centers and others explained that information about puberty is provided to the girls through school. 2 mothers expressed the desire to larn more about the topic and then they could better explain the process to their daughters, and another, who had attended a form to teach her how to communicate with her daughter, shared her experience by stating:

We need to brainwash ourselves a little bit more. Go to talks without beingness shy.

She [daughter] asks me [about puberty] and I try to explicate the all-time I can so she tin can sympathize. I don't like to lie to her.

Aye considering [in the form] you learn, considering no 1 ever teaches you how to explain things to your kids.

Not all of the parents were certain of the sources used by their daughters to learn about puberty. They did wait that the schoolhouse and peers would play major roles in such teaching. Some mothers indicated that girls are shown a video about puberty in the fifth grade. The mothers thought this instruction, along with information from magazines, television set, family members (such as older cousins), or friends would exist adequate. Although the fathers were not specifically questioned regarding sources of data used by their daughters, they did list the media as very influential in shaping their daughters' perceptions and attitudes toward clothing, boys, and body image.

Daughters' Perceptions

Health and trunk size

When asked how they felt about their bodies, the majority of the girls reported that they felt practiced about their bodies. However, a few did not recall their bodies were in optimal condition because of occasional illnesses. The girls gave a multifariousness of answers about what they did to go along in shape. First, they mentioned eating healthy, "adept" foods, such equally milk, juice, fruit, and vegetables. They likewise reported taking part in concrete activities such as running, walking, racing, doing cartwheels, dancing, doing jumping jacks, and riding bicycles.

Body epitome

When asked whether they used a mirror, the bulk of the girls said they avoided doing and then considering it made them feel ugly. They fabricated exceptions for when they were going to an event. About one-half of the girls used negative words such as "short," "fat," and "ugly," to describe themselves, and indicated comparing their bodies to the bodies of other girls at school. One girl fifty-fifty mentioned using a measuring record to mensurate whether she was taller than her friend. Some of these negative images seemed to be reinforced past either family members or peers. For instance, ane of the girls said, "My mom tells me to run so I can lose weight. I run in a square in my firm…. When I run she tells me I await skinnier…. I experience skillful." The aforementioned daughter went on to say that she felt bad about being fatty considering the doctor had put her on a diet, whereas her friends were non on a diet. She also reported boys teasing her when she was fat merely non when she was skinny. Another girl recounted receiving a positive statement about her body, saying, "I experience proud considering my friends tell me I am thinner than they are."

Pubertal development

Most of the younger girls were not familiar with the word "puberty" prior to the moderator's brief caption. However, one of the older girls explained that puberty was "the changes in your body." A majority of the girls recalled having learned about sure aspects of growth and development through television shows, their school nurse, from a healthy body Spider web site, and gym classes—only were however not quite sure what the whole procedure entailed. In terms of how they saw themselves irresolute, the younger girls believed that they would grow taller, eat more, have longer hair, have improve teeth, go thinner, and that their faces would change as they grew older. In dissimilarity, two of the older girls (who had started their menstrual cycles) mentioned breast development as i of the changes that would occur.

Some of the younger girls stated that they felt good near the upcoming changes in their bodies and were looking forward to growing up. They associated their growth and evolution with a greater sense of liberty and seemed happy about growing up because it meant they could participate in more than activities, such as going on more than field trips than younger children. However, i girl did written report feeling distressing because growing up meant she would have to practise more than homework. In full general, the girls assumed that pubertal changes would occur between the ages of 11 and 20 years, with xv years being the "norm" most frequently cited.

Daughters' Communication With Parents and Peers

All the girls said they had a good relationship with their mother, and felt they could talk to their mother about most things except boys or specific changes in their bodies. For the most part, the girls reported that they got along with their mother and were appreciative of her equally a mentor with whom they could talk. They reported conversations with their respective mother well-nigh their growth, grades, school activities, and the hereafter. Speaking of her human relationship with her female parent, one of the girls explained, "Sometimes nosotros get along good, sometimes bad." Some other girl said, "We talk about exercises that nosotros practise to lose weight." Almost of the girls could recollect at to the lowest degree one enjoyable activity in which they regularly participated with their mothers.

Most of the girls said they did non talk to their friends about their bodies growing and changing, either because their friends did non bear witness involvement or got mad at them for pointing out sure things about their [the friend'southward] body shape. Furthermore, they regarded talking to their friends about puberty as putting themselves in a position where the friends could hurt their feelings. One girl reported talking "about who is skinnier and who is fatter" with her friends, and that it made her feel bad "because some girls say I'm fat." Although the girls preferred not to talk to their friends straight nigh how their bodies were growing and irresolute, they did mention comparing height and weight and talking about girls chubbier than themselves. They enjoyed other girls telling them they were pretty and skinny.

Give-and-take

Contrary to previous enquiry that has oft excluded fathers' input either because of perceived lack of interest or lack of involvement in their child'due south evolution, our findings suggest that fathers are very receptive and open up to participating in research relevant to their children. Consistent with Saracho and Spodek'due south (2008) description of MA fathers being either gender essentialist or gender progressive in their office, most of the fathers from our focus groups expressed sentiments that could exist categorized every bit gender progressive, meaning they perceived their roles in both domestic and occupational activities as equal to those of their wives. Although a few emphasized the mother's role as the primary caretaker and nurturer, several fathers saw themselves playing an integral part in their daughter's growth and development, either directly or through their spouse. They also acknowledged themselves as equal partners in determination making regarding their daughters.

Our findings indicate that mothers' and fathers' perceptions of their daughters' puberty and body image were not substantially dissimilar from one another. In fact, both parents perceived their daughters to be by and large healthy, despite highlighting some concerns regarding their daughter'southward weight. Goodell, Pierce, Bravo, and Ferris (2008) reported similar findings amongst minority parents of low socioeconomic condition; their findings indicated that perception of overweight was strongly influenced by family and cultural groundwork, and did not readily define an overweight child as unhealthy. These findings, forth with a recent written report analyzing proximal family issues of treatment of overweight youth and their parents, underscore some barriers that need to exist considered when implementing weight-loss interventions among this group (Holt et al., 2008). For instance, parents could show resistance to encouraging their children to lose weight if they practice not perceive weight to be a true problem. Thus, interventions targeting weight loss in this population should focus on educating parents and children in a manner that clearly defines healthy vs. unhealthy weight.

Although few studies have examined fathers' perceptions of their daughter's body image, the female parent–daughter relationship is readily understood to play a cardinal role in explaining a girl'due south perception of her ain trunk prototype (Ogden & Steward, 2000). An example of this concept is illustrated by one of the girls in a focus group who stated that her female parent made her run effectually the business firm in squares so she could lose weight; she went on to report "feeling good" when her mom reinforced her beliefs by telling her that she "looks skinnier." Such human relationship dynamics could exist detrimental if a girl perceives her mother'southward view and projection of her torso image as mainly negative. Therefore, interventions should be aimed at encouraging mothers to build self-efficacy and project positive perceptions to their daughters regarding body image.

Even though the fathers' knowledge of the daughters' growth and development came primarily from the mothers, there were instances when several fathers expressed the importance of existence actively involved in their daughters' lives. Although some fathers indicated spending time with their daughters and participating in sports activities, they did express that their work schedule prohibited them from doing so as often every bit they would have liked. Consistent with our findings was a report almost Mexican-origin parents' involvement in their children'southward lives, showing that time spent in shared activities by the female parent–daughter pair was essentially greater than the father–daughter pair, that in turn was greater than the corporeality of fourth dimension spent with boys for both parents (Updegraff, Killoren, & Thayer, 2007). Thus, it seems that fathers do interact with their daughters at the prepubertal and peripubertal stages; however, the extent and benefit of this relationship need to be explored in further inquiry.

According to the evolutionary theory of socialization, a stressful rearing environment in babyhood and the development of insecure attachments to parents promote early reproductive success in daughters, whereas delayed maturation is characterized by the contrary (Belsky et al., 2007). In line with this theory, several articles (both prospective and retrospective reports) on the effects of family context, childrearing, and pubertal timing have reported that experiences such as harsh parenting, conflicted child–parent relationships, and marital disharmonize predict before timing of pubertal development (Moffitt, Caspi, Belsky, & Silva, 1992). Consistent with theses studies, our findings provide contextual data regarding parental communication and involvement in their daughters' lives. Both mothers and fathers seemed integrally involved in the determination-making process regarding how their daughters dressed and the influence of their friends. Furthermore, the mothers served equally a key intermediary through which the fathers could learn nigh their daughters' growth and evolution and, in turn, relay communication to their daughters indirectly. Given that parental involvement and improved parent–child communication during the adolescent years are of import factors in buffering adolescents from before maturation and diverse social and emotional issues, greater attempt should be made by parents to strengthen these bonds during the boyish years (Peres et al., 2008; Vigil & Geary, 2006).

The absence of a father in the home is a stressful situation that is besides associated with an earlier onset of puberty in NHW girls (Ellis, 2004; Ellis, McFadyen-Ketchum, Dodge, Pettit, & Bates, 1999). Withal, these findings are not consistent amongst minorities, and there remains a dearth of show on the levels of interaction and advice in father–daughter relationships. Some of the fathers' interactions with their daughters (through activities such as playing soccer, reading, and going to the park) indicated the blazon of involvement that has been associated with reducing early biological maturation (Ellis, 2004; Ellis et al., 1999). Still, this level of interest was not reported beyond all of our focus groups. Many fathers expressed the desire to actively engage in activities with their daughters, but were not able to practice and so because of lack of fourth dimension.

With regard to mothers' recalled pubertal experiences compared to the perceived experiences of their daughters, the mothers' recollections were mostly negative, whereas the daughters reported more positive than negative aspects of growing up. Previous reports have attributed girls' ambivalence toward puberty to mixed messages from the media, friends, and parents, which can oftentimes contradict one another (Marvan et al., 2007). In fact, about of the girls from our focus groups had not still experienced any negative signs of puberty, such as menstrual cramps, and well-nigh of them could just articulate their perceptions and attitudes toward puberty in very broad terms. Therefore, they emphasized the positive aspects such every bit the physical changes in summit and weight, and expressed looking forward to growing and developing because it represented more than independence from their parents. On the other hand, MA mothers reported much more than negative experiences. Such discrepancies could take been because the mothers themselves had actually gone through this upshot or because of the general negative emphasis placed on puberty as a fourth dimension of crisis. As such, information technology thus becomes of import for families to accost pubertal problems with boyish girls at an historic period prior to the onset of puberty. Furthermore, more emphasis should be placed on the positive rather than the negative aspects of puberty to assure that girls are competent and able to deal with pubertal issues prior to reaching puberty.

Although our results provide important data regarding MA familial perceptions of puberty, our small sample size is a limiting gene. Furthermore, the MMC has families of low socioeconomic status (SES) and almost of the parents were from United mexican states; therefore, our results are exploratory in nature and cannot be extrapolated to the general Mexican American population or to those of eye or upper SES. However, we found strong show of parental concern regarding their daughters' body image and pubertal growth, and showed that information technology was feasible to obtain quality information from fathers regarding their daughters' growth and evolution.

A major strength of the study was the existing infrastructure of the MMC, which allowed recruitment of participants. Furthermore, the strategy of recruiting triads as opposed to mother–daughter pairs increased our response rates, likely because of the inclusion of the father, traditionally the familial authorisation figure who can influence the family's participation. Finally, recruiting girls of 6 to 12 years helped us ensure a representation of girls at different stages of the pubertal continuum, and provided a broader base for understanding how girls of different ages perceive body image and pubertal growth.

The continuing reject in age at puberty among MA girls, compounded past the secular trend in obesity and various cultural barriers, nowadays major bug for MA girls (Flegal et al., 2004; Siegel et al., 1999; Tremblay & Frigon, 2005). Although more than in-depth studies are needed to corroborate our findings, it is axiomatic that interventions addressing risk factors for early puberty, such equally obesity, should focus on the family unit rather than on the individual kid or the mother–girl dyad, and should embark at an early on historic period to obtain optimal results. This approach has proven successful for increasing noesis of salubrious behaviors and providing positive health outcomes among populations along the Texas–Mexico border (Brownish & Hanis, 1995; Mier, Medina, & Ory, 2007). More effort should also be fabricated to focus on the social and emotional consequences—every bit well as informational resource—regarding overweight and pubertal development. These resources need to exist culturally appropriate when used to address norms and perceptions of a healthy torso. As well, they should be accessible to families so that overweight in young MA girls tin be effectively targeted, possibly delaying the declining trend in pubertal growth and development. These considerations should be incorporated into future studies addressing the physical, cultural, and socioeconomic dynamics of puberty in this population.

Acknowledgments

This research was supported by a contract from the National Institute of Health (NIH-NCI-OD/CCR: 263-MQ-515960), the Caroline W. Law Fund for Cancer Prevention, and the Dan Duncan Family Found. Rosenie Thelus Jean was supported past a National Cancer Institute (NCI) fellowship (R25T CA57730) and Anna V. Wilkinson by an NCI grant (K07 CA12988).

Footnotes

Contributor Data

Rosenie Thelus Jean, University of Texas, M. D. Anderson Cancer Eye in Houston, Texas, United states of america.

Melissa 50. Bondy, Academy of Texas, M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, U.s..

Anna V. Wilkinson, University of Texas, M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, The states.

Michele R. Forman, University of Texas, G. D. Anderson Cancer Eye in Houston, Texas, USA.

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Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3183834/

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