Association between age at menarche and physical development among minority nationality girls aged 9-18 in China

Objective To know the association between age at menarche(AAM) and physical development among the Mongolian,Hui,Zhuang and Korean Nationality girls in China.Methods The AAMs,height,weight,chest circumference and BMI were compared in minority groups of Chinese girls who participated in National Physical Fitness and Health Surveillance in 2005.Results AAMs were 12.78,13.28,12.71 and 12.35 years old for the Mongolian,Hui,Zhuang and Korean Nationality girls,respectively.At the age of 18 years old Mongolian,Hui,Zhuang and Korean Nationality girls,the heights were 159.0,159.0,155.1 and 157.5cm;the weights were 54.7,53.3,47.6 and 52.3kg;and the chest circumferences were 78.7,78.8,75.7 and 79.4cm,respectively.The physical indicators at the age of 11 to 14 years old of the menstruation menarche girls were significantly higher than those of the non-menstruation menarche girls(P0.01).Conclusion The onset of menarche is earlier in Korean Nationality girls than in other three minority groups.The heights were higher in the Mongolian and Hui girls than Zhuang and Korean Nationality girls.There is a significant relationship between menarche and physical development.