What happens to boy's and girl's bodies during puberty?

Answer 1

As this is the male puberty category I'll concentrate on the changes in boys... Puberty is very variable. Boys can start it at different ages and they don't all go through the various stages in the same order. Here at the visible signs of puberty, which might happen in any order... growth of hair on your scrotum and in the region of your penis (also around your anus), growth of hair on your ankles and in your armpits. Growth of facial hair. Your penis will get longer and thicker, your scrotum will get darker in colour and hang lower to accomodate the increasing size of your testes. You will sweat more and your sweat will begin to smell. You may get spots and blackheads. You will grow taller and your muscles will develop. You will find yourself think about sex a lot and you will get erections. You may find yourself mentally comparing the size of your own penis with the penises of other boys in the showers at school, this doesn't necessarily mean that you are gay, just that you are curious which is perfectly normal. You may also feel the urge to masturbate and when you do at some point you will eventually produce sperm. Oh and your voice will "break" and lower in pitch as your larynx (voice box or Adam's apple) enlarges and you'll also suffer from abrupt mood swings (your family will suffer because of them too). There is no definitive end point to puberty. By 21 or so years of age (if not sooner) you probably have reached your maximum height and your penis will probably have reached its maximum length but muscle mass and body hair may continue to extend after this age and may continue into the mid thirties or perhaps even later. The mind of a boy will also change and he will develop adult attitutes and ways of thinking. As part of this process teenagers often become rebellious. Initially rebellion may be limited to disagreements with their own parents but soon they begin to question other parts of society, religon, laws and virtually everything else. This is good, it is the way things are meant to be. As a young child you accept unquestioningly the decisions of your parents. As you reach puberty you begin to question everything, it is part of the process of growing independent, of become an adult yourself who is capable of making his own decisions. Moods are greatly influenced by hormone levels and at puberty the body is awash with hormones, which can lead to very intense feelings and hugely variable mood swings. One moment you're on top of the world and the next minute you hate yourself and want to die. These feelings are typical and eventually, as the process of puberty tails off, the mood swings will lessen. You'll develop your own personality and ideas, which will be different from those of your parents but not necessarily bought lock stock and barrel from your favourite band or movie.

Girls also experience many changes to their bodies and their minds. Most obviously from a boys view point girls begin to develop breast and a "figure." Their hips widen and their bodies develop a more rounded shape. Most important from a girls viewpoint is that they begin to ovulate (produce eggs) so that they can become pregant and have children if they have sexual intercourse with a boy. Unfertilized eggs are flushed out of a girls body, once a month, by a process called menstruation (also called a monthly or a period). Girls also grow hair in their pubic region and in their armpits but many girls remove underarm hair by shaving or by using a depilatory cream. Many girls also suffer with spots during puberty. For more info on girls puberty try the female puberty category.

Answer 2

Girls on average start puberty around 10-11 sometimes earlier. The first major changes in a girl are the growing breasts, followed by darker armpit, pubic and leg hair. Periods are also quite soon after usually their first period is two years after their breasts start growing. Most girls start their periods around 12-13 but some can be earlier or much later. Don't fear if you haven't started by 13 some don't start even at 18. Girls also grow a lot more in height especially round the first two years after their first period.

Boys start puberty later than girls usually about 12-13. The first major change on a boy is the extra hair on their bodies for example : pubic, leg, belly button, chest. Their voices will break around 13 but some a lot later. they will grow a lot especially towards the end of puberty but they will a lot throughout the whole of puberty. Boys around 13 or 14 will also experience wet dreams this process is where they are first producing sperm. Also around puberty they will begin to get erections even when they aren't aroused.