TRAPPED IN THE BODY OF A 10 YR OLD: TEENAGE GIRL BORN WITHOUT HORMONES

She is about to start driving and soon will be able to legally buy alcohol and get married, but Poppy Webb-Jones still looks and thinks like a ten-year-old girl. Unlike other 17-year-olds, Poppy is more interested in Hannah Montana and Justin Bieber than wearing make-up, experimenting with boys or staying out late. This is due to a rare condition which means she was born without any hormones, meaning she has never gone through puberty, never had a growth spurt and never thrown a teenage tantrum. To many parents of teenagers, Poppy must sound like the perfect child, but unbeknown to her or her mother Karen Webb-Meek, her condition posed a deadly risk to her health throughout her whole childhood. Poppy was born with a condition called panhypopituitarism meaning she lacks most of the hormones essential for life. Hypopituitarism is the decreased secretion of one or more of the eight hormones normally produced by the pituitary gland at the base of the brain. If there is decreased secretion of most pituitary hormones, the term panhypopituitarism (pan meaning "all") is used. Poppy has no growth hormone, meaning her bones stopped growing around the age of 11, and she has no thyroxine, which regulates the metabolism and energy levels. In addition she has no oestrogen, which controls the onset of puberty and the development of secondary sexual characteristics.

Other great stories
BABY BABOON GOES BANANAS FOR ACROBATIC MONKEY

Most people bend over backwards to keep children entertained, but this baboon show us how it’s done .

CHUCKLING SEAL

CHUCKLING away, this little seal appears to find something hilarious .

SEAL GETS READY FOR HIS CLOSE UP

WIDE EYED and staring straight down the lens of the camera, this intrigued seal is ready for his close up .

KUNG-FU LEOPARD CUBS

Pouncing down on top of his twin brother, these two snow leopard cubs practice their kung-fu moves .

SNOWHERE TO HIDE MY NUTS! RARE RED SQUIRRELS FROLIC IN THE SNOW

If you had to scrape the snow off your car this morning or slip-slide your way into work over icy pavements spare a thought for these little critters .

THE END OF THE WORLD CINEMA

SITTING in the middle of a vast desert, an abandoned cinema is still waiting for its first movie to be screened .

RECORD BREAKING WATERMELON

AN American accountant has grown the world's biggest MELON and smashed his way into the record books with his mammoth 350 .

ASTOUNDING VIEWS FROM THE TALLEST BUILDING IN THE WORLD

WITH the mystical clouds forming a thick blanket and the electrifying lights below, these stunning pictures provide a unique view of the cityscape of Dubai taken from the tallest building in the world .

MESMERISING FIELD PATTERNS

FULL OF STUNNING colours and swirling shapes, the furrows on these fields create a mix of mesmerising patterns .

REAL LIFE DOLLS HOUSE

Ever wished you could live in a house just like Barbie's? Canadian sculptor Heather Benning has created the life-size dollhouse of her dreams out a derelict building .

PLAYFUL ELEPHANTS MAKE A SPLASH

WIDE EYED with a huge smile across her face, this little elephant is a picture of happiness .

N-ICE DAY FOR A CLIMB

CLINGING onto nothing but ice, this brave climber reaches heights of 1000 FEET as he scales frozen solid waterfalls .