Original ResearchPublished 3 September 2026The “puberty deadline”: cultural constructions of maturity, anticipated shame, and child marriage as a perceived risk-mitigation strategy in rural NigerJean Christophe Fotso · Aichatou Hamadou · Ferdinard Ngong · Paul BukulukiFrontiers in Reproductive Healthdoi 10.3389/frph.2026.1922270