Breast Development Girls usually begin puberty between the ages of 8 and 13 years old. The earliest sign of puberty in most girls is the development of breast "buds," nickel-sized bumps under the nipple. It is not unusual for breast growth to start on one side before the other.
The first sign of breast development is slight swelling under the nipple, a stage of development called breast buds. As your breasts first start to grow, they can be very tender and sore. They may also itch as your skin gets stretched. Buying a first bra can help protect new breast growth and minimize pain.
Breasts usually start to develop around the age of 9 to 11, but it's normal for them to start earlier or later. If a girl's breasts start to develop at a younger age, this doesn't mean she'll have bigger breasts than someone who starts to develop later. The rate at which breasts grow is different for everyone.
A breast bud is a lump that develops under the nipple in the first stage of breast growth. The lump may be tender and sore, but it is completely normal in girls undergoing puberty. However, if your child is under eight years old and developing breast buds, she may be experiencing precocious puberty.
It can happen on just one side at first, and take the other side about 6 months to catch up (6). Breast buds usually grow about 2–2.5 years before your period starts, but if you notice your breast buds at an earlier age (when you're 8 or 9), it may take closer to three years for your period to start.
The earliest sign of puberty in most girls is the development of breast "buds," nickel-sized bumps under the nipple. It is not unusual for breast growth to start on one side before the other. It's also common for breast buds to be somewhat tender or sore.
Breast buds are small, disc-shaped bumps that might cause your nipples to stick out. They might appear like raised bumps initially and feel slightly sore, itchy, or uncomfortable — all of this is perfectly normal. The area around your nipple, called your areola, may also start to grow and darken in color.
Breast buds – She may experience pain or firm bumps in or behind her nipples, signaling the first signs that breast buds are developing. The areola may look bigger or puffy. You can expect her period to start about two years after her breast buds develop.
When the ovaries start to produce and release (secrete) estrogen, fat in the connective tissue starts to collect. This causes the breasts to enlarge. The duct system also starts to grow. Often these breast changes happen at the same that pubic hair and armpit hair appear.
The bump is called a breast bud and it can be as small as a blueberry or a little bigger. The bump under your nipple will make the dark skin that surrounds the nipple (called the areola, uh REE uh luh), look puffy or bigger. The combination of your nipple, areola and the bump underneath it is called a breast bud.
Most of the time, a girl gets her period about 2 years after her breasts start to develop. Another sign is vaginal discharge fluid (sort of like mucus) that a girl might see or feel on her underwear. This discharge usually begins about 6 months to a year before a girl gets her first period.
Baby girls and boys will have a small breast bud that can be felt for a few weeks after they are born. These buds of tissue will become the breast tissue in the adult. In early infancy, they can be prominent because of the effects of the mother's estrogen. As the estrogen levels decrease, so does the prominence.
Baby girls (and boys) often have breast buds (thelarche). In girls, these grow bigger during the first 6 to 18 months of life, but are usually regressing (growing softer) by 2 years of age. This is a normal physiologic process involving transient activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis.
“As soon as the breasts start growing breast buds, small (sometimes very tender) bumps below the nipples, is typically when girls start wearing training bras,” said Dr. Kronborg. “Normally, by the time a girl can fill a B cup is when she'll eventually require a standard bra.”
For most children, early puberty starts for no known reason. It can run in families. Sometimes there is a problem in the brain, such as an injury, a tumor or an infection. Early puberty can also be caused by a problem in the sex glands (testes or ovaries), the thyroid gland or the adrenal glands.
When your child's period is coming, they might have a range of physical symptoms, including sore breasts, pimples and greasy hair. Your child might also have a sore tummy, feel sick or have diarrhoea. Period pain and these associated symptoms are common.
Young girls often develop "breast buds," which appear just before the beginning of puberty. These bumps may be tender. They are common around age 9, but may happen as early as age 6. Teenage boys may develop breast enlargement and lumps because of hormone changes in mid-puberty.
Different Variations of Normal
But it's perfectly normal for breast development to start anytime between the ages of 7 and 13. A girl's first menstrual period usually happens about 2 to 2½ years after breast development begins.
Breast buds have also been known to come and go, again not to worry. But at some point the budding will actually progress to breast development and the continuing changes of the breast during puberty.
Genetics: Some men and women are predisposed to having a fuller breast size. This can be inherited from both the mother's and father's side of the family. Hormonal Changes: Women develop their breasts during puberty as estrogen increases.
Your first period (and the next few after that) may just look like brown spotting in your knickers. It's not the red blood you may have been expecting. So what actually DOES your first period look like? A lot of girls are surprised when their first period looks like just a few brownish spots in their knickers.
If your daughter hasn't had her first menstrual cycle by 15, or if more than three years have passed since she started developing breasts, she should see a physician.