Secular trends in growth and maturation in British girls

Over a period of 28 years, a succession of cross-sectional surveys was carried out on young women entering the University College of Swansea (1959–1970) and then the University of Warwick (1971–1986) each year. Recall data on age at menarche and measurements of stature provide an indication of secular trends in growth and maturation in this section of the population of Britain. The earlier trend to younger age at menarche came to an end in girls born in approximately 1946 and entering university in 1964, and subsequently reversed, so that there is now a secular increase in menarcheal age. The successive analyses of stature show no such reversal, but instead a steady increase in mean stature throughout the period. © 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.