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
IRELAND'S HIDDEN BEAUTY
THE TOWERING Irish cliffs of Moher stand tall over the rippling Atlantic Ocean .
BEING BRITNEY'S LOOKALIKE HAS EARNED ME £300K
A former waitress who quit serving tables to become a professional Britney lookalike has told how her incredible likeness has earned her £300,000 as a full time doppelganger .
FIRE BREATHING FIAT 500
AN ITALIAN mechanic has created the world’s most ferocious mini-car .
BABY ELEPHANT HAS FUN IN THE SUN
SPLASHING around in a paddling pool, this little elephant soaks up the sunshine .
POLAR BEAR PLAY
WITH SNOW COVERING the ground around them, these two polar bears play fight .
AN ABANDONED HOUSE IN THE WOODS
INTIMATELY showcasing personal artefacts from a family's life, this abandoned bungalow has been left to rot for almost a decade .
UNUSUAL ANIMAL FRIENDSHIP
SAT ON top of a Brazilian turtle’s head, this little ladybird looks content as he studies his environment from a new height .
THE DOCTOR WON'T SEE YOU NOW
ONCE A doctor’s surgery, family home and office, an array of medical equipment is scattered throughout this abandoned home .
SLEEP PARALYSIS DREAMS TURNED REALITY
SITTING on a burning sofa unable to move, one man turns his terrifying dreams into reality .
KALEIDOSCOPIC CATHEDRALS AND CHURCHES
THESE kaleidoscopic-like photographs capture England’s churches and cathedrals in all their glory .
GLOWWORMS LIGHT UP TOURIST TRAIL
IN a galaxy not so far away lies a magical display of lights that could be the latest image from NASA .