FRHD 1010 Lecture : Chapter 8- Families.docx

• School: University of Guelph
• Department: Family Relations and Human Development
• Course: FRHD 1010
• Professor: Unknown

Document Summary

Puberty: changes in physiological, anatomy and physical functioning that develop a person into a mature adult biologically and prepare the body for sexual reproduction. Adolescence: period of the life span between the time puberty begins and the time adult status is approached, when young people are preparing to take on the roles and responsibilities of adulthood in their culture. Adolescence begins with notable changes of puberty, through which the body is transformed to reach the capacity for sexual reproduction. Puberty is derived from the latin word pubescere which means to grow hairy . Pubertal changes begin once a threshold level of body fat is reached. Once the threshold is reached a series of chemical events is triggered beginning in the hypothalamus. These events lead to the increase of sex hormones from the ovaries and testes. Estrogen: sex hormones that have especially high levels in females from puberty onward and are mostly responsible for female primary and secondary sex characteristics.