By Shona Johnson
Most women, at some stage in their life come to the conclusion that they’ve gotten a bit too bouncy to not wear bras. They’ll have a vague idea of bra size, and go for whatever looks right or seems comfortable, but what about when you get it wrong?
I went to Marks & Spencer with my mum last week to get measured professionally, just to see if I’d actually been wearing the right sized bra for the past three years (I seemed to suffer from achy-boob syndrome a bit too often for my liking) – turns out I hadn’t been. Ever since I was 16, I’ve worn a B-cup bra, after getting properly measured I discovered that I was indeed a C-cup.
I had been experiencing unusual breast pain almost non stop for a few weeks, it turns out that the wire in most of my bras were heavily cutting into my breast tissue, causing really bad red marks and throbbing pain – nasty.
I did a bit of research, and found out the effects that wearing a bra that is too tight has on the body:
Boob Pain – The obvious bra-related problem. Wearing a bra that is too small for you causes pain when too much pressure from the elastic or the wire banding is exerted on the sensitive breast tissue, wearing tight bras for extended periods of time can cause breast pain that can last for days at a time.
Saggy Boobs – You heard it folks, tight bras cause sagging breasts! A bra is meant to keep your breasts comfortable, and in the right position – a bra that pushes the wire too far up and underneath the breast can actually make the breasts heavier in all the wrong places – causing sagging.
Blocked Lymph Nodes – Lymphatic vessels are extremely thin, and when too much pressure is exerted upon them it causes the lymph valves to close, making the body more susceptible to infection carried via the lymph nodes. In other words, it’ll make your boobs easier to infect.
Bad Posture – Pain felt in the back and shoulders affects the way you move your body, making you bend more frequently – which over a long period of time will ruin your posture.
It May Cause Breast Cancer – Blocked blood flow to breasts caused by a tight bra may cause cancer in the breast tissue.
Getting measured is quick, painless, free and is done over-the bra so you don’t have to worry about flashing anyone. It is important that everyone who wears a bra gets measured properly, because nobody wants sad, unhappy boobs. It is also important to check your boobs every month, just so that you can make sure everything is okay. To find out how to check them properly, visit www.copafeel.org/boob-check – because nothing is more important than your health, not even a cute, tight-fitting bra.
