By age eight, about half of African-American girls and 15 percent of Caucasian girls show clear signs of sexual development. Boys too are maturing earlier than ever. Thanks to author/researcher Marcia Herman-Giddens, we knew that in 1997. But now public health watchers and naturopathic doctors like Sherrill Sellman are really becoming alarmed about the trend.

Is early puberty due to a sedentary lifestyle, environmental toxins, hormones in grocery store milk, or what? Kudos to Alternative Medicine magazine for looking into this in a six-page feature in their September issue. Interesting tips for everyone can be found in the sidebars: avoid hormone-laden food, buy organic fruits and veggies, create a green household, keep the kids active, have them drink filtered water, and encourage them to eat detoxifying foods like broccoli and cauliflower.