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
ICELAND'S 360 DEGREE VIEW WATERFALL
THESE BREATH-TAKING photographs show the natural beauty of Iceland's most famous waterfall .
OPEN WIDE! MONKEY GIVES FRIEND AN UNEXPECTED DENTAL CHECK-UP
This cheeky macaque gets up close and personal as he examines the dental hygiene of his fellow primate .
THE WORLD'S MOST EXPENSIVE BABY COT
A LUXURY baby cot has hit the shelves with a price tag just shy of 10 MILLION POUNDS .
FAST FOOD FISHING
THIS is the awesome moment an Osprey catches its prey travelling at 50mph, giving new meaning to FAST FOOD .
AUSTRALIAN TOWN LOCATED UNDERGROUND
A mining town in Australia’s outback appears to be completely deserted, but its residents have escaped the scorching heat by living in underground caves .
ADORABLE ORANGUTAN TURNS ONE
An adorable orangutan named Pongo celebrates his first birthday at Zoo Atlanta, Georgia, America .
STUNNING ENGLISH COUNTRYSIDE
LOCATIONS bursting with vibrant greens and chestnut browns, these photographs capture the peaceful English countryside in all its glory .
CHEATING COPPERS CAUGHT RED HANDED AT AIRPORT BY SCORNED MISSUS
A scorned woman sparked a punch-up in an airport after she caught her copper boyfriend returning from a romantic holiday with a female police officer .
PEEKABOO SQUIRRELS EMERGE FROM THEIR NEST
SQUEEZING their furry faces through a hole in a tree, a trio of curious baby squirrels leave their nest for the first time to explore their surroundings .
EYE-CATCHING TRIBAL HAIRSTYLES
BRAIDED, sculpted and beaded, these are the eye-catching hairstyles worn by the tribal women of Angola .
THEY'RE BEHIND YOU!
SURROUNDED by tens of thousands of fish, this outnumbered diver is dwarfed by a mass of sea life .
CUTEST PICTURES OF PUPPIES AND BABY EVER
HEART-MELTING shots of a French bulldog and a ten-month-old French baby could be the cutest you’re likely to see .