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For most children, hitting puberty during the pre-adolescent years could be a very confusing time. Since parents have a general idea of when the average child goes through puberty, education and talks could ease that confusion. However, for some children, puberty might happen a little faster than expected. Early puberty, which occurs before nine-years-old, has been tied to nutrition and environment. Aside from these non-biological factors, researchers have also found that a little over 27 percent of early onset puberty could be hereditary. Now, a new study has identified a particular gene that could explain early puberty, also known as central precocious puberty.

In this study, researchers recruited 40 members from 15 families that had cases of central precocious puberty. The researchers conducted gene sequences from every individual and discovered that a particular gene known as MKRN3 appeared to affect when puberty occurred. The researchers found that when this gene, which is passed down through the father, had four mutations, it prompted early puberty. These four mutations were responsible for activating reproductive hormones too early.

This finding is important in understanding how early puberty could influence common health issues within families. A study that was published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism concluded that girls who hit puberty before the age of 12 had a 23 percent increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease and had a 28 percent increased risk of dying from a heart attack or stroke. Another study, which was published in Pediatrics, found that boys today were hitting puberty an average of two years earlier than boys from a decade ago, which could explain higher rates of obesity.

The study was published in the New England Journal of Medicine. It will be presented at the Endocrine Society's annual meeting on June 17.