There are documented studies showing a pattern of declining age at menarche in the developed world due to better nutrition, environment and general conditions of living. Nigeria, though a developing country is well endowed with natural resources. Moreso, it is hoped that with democratization, the living standard of the average Nigerian should improve. One may wonder whether the nation’s wealth, democritization and the said improvement in gross domestic product (GDP) actually affect the standard of living of the average Nigerian girl vis a vis their age of menarche. This study therefore sought to evaluate the trend in Calabar, Nigeria as a function of improved health and general condition of living. The study was conducted on 1,200 students in junior secondary school 1 – 3 (JSS1 to JSS3) in selected public and private secondary schools in Calabar. A structured questionnaire was used to obtain relevant information while the weight and height were measured with a bathroom scale and improvised stadiometer respectively. The result showed a mean menarcheal age of 13.70±0.55. Duration of menstrual flow was 4 – 5 days for most students. The mean menarcheal age of these girls did not differ significantly from the international average of 13.53 years. There was however a siginficiant reduction in the mean menarcheal age of girls in private schools when compared with those in public schools (P<0.05). The mean BMI of girls in private schools was significantly higher than that of girls in public schools (P<0.05). The difference is attributable to the difference socio-economic and educational levels of parents of girls in the two groups of respondents.
