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Oh, Grow Up! Four things you thought you’d left in childhood ... but didn’t. 
"Don’t worry, honey, you’ll grow out of it,” was the oft-chosen mantra of so many of our parents when it came to childhood’s common woes. Though we’ve shed the most awkward and obvious trappings of youth, such as braces and training bras, there are woes from the early years that continue to plague adults. From pimples to baby fat, here’s the truth behind a few of the pesky phenomena we thought adulthood would free us from. Acne: It Doesn’t Go Away Acne is not only an annoyance for adults but also a boon for cosmetic marketers targeting a different demographic than the usual fresh-face seeking teens. What happened to the promise of blemish-free adult faces? As it turns out, it wasn’t a true promise to begin with: 80 percent of people between ages 11 and 30 have suffered from acne at some point, while for some adults, it can continue into their 40s and 50s, according to the National Institutes of Health. Acne brought on by surging hormones during teen years can continue into the 20s, 30s and 40s, says Dr. Charles E. Crutchfield III, a dermatology professor at the University of Minnesota Medical School. Because acne surfaces during puberty, “many parents unfairly equate acne as a rite of passage,” that they assume will also end in the teen years, Crutchfield says. “I have [adult] patients that say, ‘Life isn’t fair. I have acne and wrinkles.’ ” Acne is caused by blocked pores, often triggered by hormonal fluctuations, says Dr. Diane Berson, who teaches dermatology at Weill Medical College of Cornell University in New York. “Women have hormonal fluctuations throughout their entire adult life. Whether it’s related to periods, or going on or off the pill, or pregnancy, or even perimenopause or menopause, there seems to always be some sort of a stimulation for breakouts,” Berson says. Also, if your makeup or skin-care products aren’t labeled “oil-free” or “noncomedogenic,” you could be inadvertently blocking your pores, says Hema A. Sundaram, M.D., a Maryland-based dermatologist. Has adult acne become more prevalent, or is it just that more adults are seeking treatment and marketers are catching on? “Stress can also exacerbate breakouts in someone who’s prone to acne,” says Berson, adding that higher stress levels for adults managing work, family and aging parents could be a factor in increased adult acne in recent years. “I think in addition, there is an increased awareness of it. Women who used to get [acne] used to think … I’m not going to bother getting help because this isn’t supposed to happen at my age.” Instead of running straight for the Clearasil you used as a kid, consulting a dermatologist is the best weapon to fight adult acne. Oral antibiotics like minocycline are dermatologists’ first-choice treatment across the board for anyone older than 12 with inflamed pimples. Topical treatments for women tend to have the same active ingredients as those prescribed for teens, but have an emollient base for dry or sensitive skin, as opposed to “the classic oily adolescent skin,” says Berson, who adds that women with cyclical acne often see improvement with hormone therapies like birth control. Menstrual Pain: Still Cramping Our Lifestyles Whether it was Mom or the school nurse who told you those monster cramps would subside as you grew older, they were both wrong. Menstrual cramps are an entirely individual phenomenon, says Joshua Holden, M.D., an obstetrician/gynecologist at New York’s Columbia Presbyterian Hospital, and there is no scientific evidence that cramps lessen or worsen in severity as you grow older. Some teens suffer from severe cramping during their periods, while others have none at all. The same goes for adults, though women have access to medicinal options, like birth control, that can lessen the severity of cramps and regulate menstrual cycles. While Mom may have insisted that her cramps disappeared after having children, there’s also no medical evidence to support this as a trend, Holden says. There is a thread of truth to this conjecture, as cramps likely lessen in late adulthood as menopause sets in. All women of childbearing age, from first period to menopause, should be aware that severe menstrual cramps can be a symptom of endometriosis or other pelvic disease, says Holden, so be sure to discuss debilitating cramps with your gynecologist. Baby Fat: What’s in a Name? “Baby fat” is what we fondly call that bit of extra chub around waists or arms that we’ve held onto since childhood; however, it’s just that — a name. “Baby fat is a myth. It is real fat,” says Dr. Susan Bartell, a New York City-based psychologist and author specializing in children’s weight issues. “Baby fat” is a phrase that’s entered our vocabulary to describe chubbiness as endearing and temporary, while the word “fat” has gained an ugly and cruel connotation. The notion of baby fat starts with parents wanting to plump up their infants, as a scrawny baby is seen as unhealthy and malnourished, Bartell says. Those pinchable rolls of fat on an infant are healthy and normal at that stage of development; however, extra weight on a child can quickly become unhealthy. Parents who think their child will “grow out of” chubbiness maybe be overlooking that their child needs a healthy, balanced diet and regular exercise to avoid childhood obesity and its related ailments. “A lot of parents [think that] when their kids go through puberty, that fat is going to melt away … and unless they have a major, major growth spurt, it’s not,” says Bartell, adding that the opposite is true for girls, who often gain weight during puberty as their bodies become more curvy. “We’re seeing now in teenagers Type 2 diabetes, which is normally reserved for adults, [and] it starts in childhood from baby fat. We’re seeing kids with high cholesterol, which used to be reserved for adults,” Bartell says. “Beginning when kids are very young, having a healthy body will really help them physically and emotionally for the rest of their lives.” For adults fighting that so-called “baby fat,” the cure isn’t doing extra sit-ups to “melt” away love handles. “You can’t spot-lose,” Bartell says. “Your goal should be to feel healthy inside and outside, [to] eat healthily and exercise,” she says. Your family doctor can help you gauge whether that extra weight you call “baby fat,” on yourself or your child, could lead to health problems. Insecurity: One Thing You Never Quite Grow Out Of Remember feeling self-conscious about getting picked last for the kickball team? Like your ugly duckling phase, you were reassured you’d grow out of your insecurity and come into your own. Truth is, it’s how you handled those issues in childhood that may be affecting your adult life. “Insecurity is rooted in childhood experiences: parental comments, interactions with friends, and of course, being graded at school,” says New York-based stress-management expert Debbie Mandel. “As we become adults, we think we should leave those insecurities behind,” says Dr. Christopher Knippers, a specialist with the Betty Ford Center, which treats alcohol and drug abuse. “And often we have, because we have learned various defense mechanisms for shielding ourselves from feeling those insecurities. But certainly under stress or any situation that might cause us to doubt ourselves, like a job loss or a divorce … you tap into those old insecurities.” How can we tap out of these deep-down insecurities and head to a more positive place? Knippers suggests a simple mental exercise: sit down and make a list of your basic beliefs about yourself. Then, write down what evidence you can recall for this belief. “Nearly everybody will find they have contradictory beliefs about themselves; they have a set of beliefs based upon their adult experiences that are probably relatively balanced, but they also have a set of other beliefs about themselves that are based more on … childhood experiences that are still there,” Knippers says. “It stays with us, unless we work pretty hard to [work] it out.” If you recall that a belief is backed by an insignificant experience: For example, you feel you’re bad at math because you failed a test in elementary school. Then try to develop a more balanced counterbelief about your adult self. Another exercise is to recall the last time you felt insecure. “[Ask yourself,] what was the thought in my head the last time I felt insecure? That is based on a belief that you have about yourself that’s in there somewhere,” Knippers says. “People need to recognize, I have a lot of shortcomings in myself… and to accept them; not to deny them and not to dwell on them. Then I think we can really go through life with relative lack of insecurity; a relative amount of security.” |
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