T he Body Book GIRLZ Want to Know
; LILY: Everybody talks about “When you hit puberty . . .” What is puberty anyway? Puberty is the time when your body starts producing two new hormones it hasn’t produced before.
; RENI: Great. So what’s a hormone? A hormone is a chemical that’s produced in a certain organ or gland and is then sent to another part of your body to go to work. The two new hormones in puberty are estrogen and progesterone.
; ZOOEY: I have chemicals in my body?! Why? What are they doing in there? They’re slowly turning you into a woman.
; Estrogen causes • the development of your breasts (time for a bra?) • the widening of your hips (think of it as curves) • the growth of all that extra hair in your armpits and pubic area • the production of more oil in your skin and hair (enter pimples and the greasies!) • the thickening of the hair on your legs (break out the razor!) • your new interest in boys (They haven’t gotten any less silly. you just don’t mind as much!)
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9/18/12 12:17 PM