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
OTTER FAMILY FIGHT
Splashing around in the water, a mother otter and her son are tangled in a family feud .
THE UNDERWATER WONDERLAND
SEA LIFE and greenery in one shot show nature at its very best .
WOMAN'S SKIN TURNED SILVER AFTER TAKING NOSE DROPS
An American woman whose skin turned silver after using nose drops is warning people of the dangers of medicines containing the metal .
MAN PROPOSES TO GIRLFRIEND AFTER FACEBOOK LIKES CHALLENGE
A couple have got engaged after the bride-to-be’s boyfriend set her a Facebook ‘likes’ challenge .
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE BUG KIND
THIS alien-like bug would look more at home in outer-space but it can actually be found wriggling around here on Earth .
EMPTY LONDON UNDERGROUND
USUALLY full to bursting, these London Underground stations stand silent and completely commuter free .
LIVING ON WATER: REFUGEES BUILD A LIFE AT SEA
SAILING over crystal clear waters, the Bajau people of Malaysia live their lives almost entirely at SEA .
TERRIFIED TEACHER TALKED MURDERER OUT OF STRANGLING HER
A teacher has told how she was attacked by a murderer on her way home from a night out but courageously managed to charm him out of strangling her .
SINGING STOAT
MOUTH OPEN wide, this little stoat appears to be in mid-song as he belts out a tune for his onlookers .
'MUM OF THE YEAR' FALSELY CLAIMED DEAD HUSBAND'S BENEFITS
Kelly Harvey, 30 and new boyfriend Ryan Archbold -A bereaved wife once voted Mum Of The Year has been convicted of benefit fraud after claiming widow's allowance long after her new partner had moved in .
SMILING SHARKS
A lively lemon shark grins into the camera and showcases his impressive teeth .
