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.
A doting seal smiles at her sweet little pup as she tickles its tummy on the beach .
LYING back in the snow, these two polar bears share a cuddle as they call time out on playtime .
A grey whale and her calf greet an audience of awestruck admirers on the Pacific coast of Baja California Sur, Mexico .
An Australian beach is illuminated by an enticing neon blue glow as a rare phenomenon lights up the water .
THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS - 250 DRIVERS ARRESTED FOR STREET RACING IN BIRMINGHAM- In Pic - The start line on the Heartlands Parkway Nechels Birmingham .
A makeup artist from the West Midlands magically transforms herself into famous cartoon characters using body paint .
Is your cat bored? Do his usual playthings simply not do it for him anymore? Not to worry - there's an app for that .
DIPPING his head into the vase of water, this little squirrel takes a refreshing break from an afternoon of eating .
STARING eagerly into the camera, this little toad is full of curiosity .
Leaping out of the ocean, a group of gentoo penguins fly through the air before landing safely on an iceberg .
As sunlight cascades through its vibrant stained glass windows, every inch of the Nasir-ol-Mulk Mosque bursts with colour .
From a floating jelly fish to a relaxed seal, Britain’s unappreciated beach life is captured above and below the water .