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While there remains (as of March 2001) scientific uncertainty about the impact of most contaminants on the pace and pattern of pubertal development in people, a wealth of data exists in the scientific literature on animals showing that endocrine disrupting compounds affect the rate of sexual development in rats and mice.
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Contaminants can both speed and slow the rate of sexual development. In general, it would appear from existing data that estrogen mimics speed sexual development in females, while anti-androgens slow sexual development in males. This story is far from complete. For example, we could find no report of a test of an androgen mimic (such as tributyl tin) on the rate of sexual development in males. Androgen mimics should speed the onset of puberty in males. Unfortunately, the sparseness of the scientific literature indicates that most compounds have not been tested systematically for their effects. The studies that have been done, however, reveal very strong effects, suggesting that other hormonally-active compounds, not yet studied, will also have impacts. The following table provides a sample of existing studies. For each contaminant it indicates whether sexual development is sped or slowed in males vs. females.
About leptin: Leptin is a recently discovered new hormone involved in weight regulation and the timing of puberty.
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