PT736. Early Menarche and Risk Taking Behavior in Korean Adolescence

Objectives: The aim of this study is to assess the association between early menarche and risk-taking behavior in a representative sample of Korean adolescent students. Methods: Data were drawn from cross-sectional, national and representative sample of 33,829 female adolescents (grades 7–12) based on the 2014 Korean Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to test the association between early menarche and risk-taking behavior. Results: Girls who experience an earlier age of menarche tend to have an earlier initiation of sexual intercourse(OR=4.61, 95% CI:3.05–6.98, p<0.001), smoking(OR=4.29, 95% CI:3.75–4.9, p<0.001), alcohol drinking(OR=1.13, 95% CI:1.02–1.24, p<0.001) and substance use(OR=25.16, 95% CI:18.78–33.72, p<0.001). They are also at a greater risk of early pregnancy(OR=4.05, 95% CI:2.56–6.41, p=0.01) and sexually transmitted diseases(OR=2.35, 95% CI:1.66–3.33, p<0.001). Conclusions: Early menarche is significantly associated with risk-taking behavior in Korean adolescent students. This finding underlines that early educational intervention and social programs are needed for female adolescents with early menarche.