How alcohol affects insulin‐like growth factor‐1's influences on the onset of puberty: A critical review

Alcohol (ALC) is capable of delaying signs associated with pubertal development in laboratory animals, as well as in humans. The normal onset of puberty results from a timely increase in gonadotropin‐releasing hormone (GnRH) secretion, which is associated with a gradual decline in prepubertal inhibitory influences, and the establishment of excitatory inputs that increase GnRH release, which together drive pubertal development. In recent years, insulin‐like growth factor‐1 (IGF‐1) has emerged as a pivotal contributor to prepubertal GnRH secretion and pubertal development, whose critical actions are interfered with by ALC abuse. Here we review the neuroendocrine research demonstrating the important role that IGF‐1 plays in pubertal development, and describe the detrimental effects and mechanisms of action of ALC on the onset and progression of pubertal maturation. This review addresses the detrimental effects of alcohol exposure on the actions of insulin‐like growth factor‐1 as an upstream regulator of hypothalamic gonadotropin releasing hormone secretion at the onset of puberty. The molecular and physiological studies discussed clearly demonstrate the negative impact that alcohol use can have on adolescent health and development.