I love my bras. I love the support they provide me. I love the way they “secure” my “assets”. In fact, I love my bras so much that for years I have worn them to bed because it was more comfortable. And besides, how many girls want to risk gravity taking its toll a few years too early and leaving you with saggy breasts?
But my views and habits with my bras are quickly changing. A year ago I had a breast cancer scare. My doctor found a lump in my breast during my annual exam. I was scared to death. Luckily, it turned out to be a benign cyst, but I found out that I have very fibrocystic breasts.
The Mayo Clinic defines it as such:
Fibrocystic breast disease is a very common, noncancerous (benign) breast condition. Women with fibrocystic breast disease have lumpy, painful breasts.
While the Mayo Clinic believes that it does not lead to breast cancer, other studies determine otherwise. Sydney Ross Singer and Soma Grismaijer conducted a study of 5000 women which they documented in their book “Dressed to Kill: The Link Between Breast Cancer and Bras”. Not only are women who wear bras 24 hours a day more likely to have fibrocystic breasts, but they are 113 times more likely to develop breast cancer than women who wear bras less than 12 hours a day.
Harvard University researchers also stated in a 1991 medical journal that women are 60% more likely to get breast cancer if they wear bras, than if they don’t. The theory is that lymphatic fluid in the breasts is constricted and not able to move freely. If the lymphatic fluid is not able to flow freely, then pockets of toxins form and remain in the breasts.
Now, this isn’t to say that all those toxins and chemicals released into the environment and into our food sources aren’t also a cause of Breast Cancer. But it’s looking like the body is in many cases, able to rid itself of these toxins in the breasts through the free flow of lymphatic fluid.
Looks like I need to start taking better care of my body, and letting the ladies go free once in a while. Sorry bras.
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
I think you need to find a happy medium, as bras have clear benifits, as well (like you said, they keep you perky, but they also can prevent back problems). Probably if you go for a loser fitting bra, it wouldn't be so restrictive.
I've had back problems since they started developing. That was why I'd always wear them to bed: I just hurt less. But I'd rather deal with a lot more back pain from not wearing them more than 12 hours a day than increase my chances of getting breast cancer by continuing to wear them to bed.
~~Every human heartbeat is a universe of possibilites.~~
Gregory David Roberts
If you need them to hurt less over night, I got hands, and I'm sure you could find a nice guy to hold them for you overnight..
Pillows placed correctly could bring the weight off the back too..
--
Everything, you have done, and will do, is chemically predisposed by matter, even the fact you are reading this message. You make no choices, only perceive a given reality.
You know, it's weird. I like to think that I have larger than average breasts (I'm a 36C at 5'3") and I don't think I've ever had back problems because of it. Maybe my back's strong? But people always say that larger breasts cause back pain. Maybe I'm used to it and just don't notice? I dunno. Random observations are my forte.
I'm 5'3 3/4 and wear a 36C. A C cup isn't really all that huge. As I've heard it put so elegantly, "More than a handful is a waste." Well, they say that, but when they see pictures or women with boobs that are twice that size, they can't look away or stop drooling....
-Sonja :)
"Democracy works only when you vote. When you don't take the time to vote for the candidate you find the least offensive, you run the risk of electing the candidate you find the most offensive."
Usually, "larger breasts" means a DD or bigger. C is perfectly average, really, and for most people, the perfect size.
I don't need drugs - I have genetics.
I don't know... I always viewed Cs as on the small side.
But then again, in America - if they aren't large enough to clog a toilet, a lot of men just don't bother.
I, as a C cup, was among the smallest chested in my highschool class. And I hated it. To me, there was nothing "average" about a C cup.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"when you have nothing else to say, "Fwonk" is always the perfect thing."
"yeah well, fwonk"
--Devon
Fanaile Essence
Damn.
Sucks for me to have a borderline A to B cup then.
I'd much rather have boobs on the smaller side than the larger though...
LOL - now I agree with you. But back then, I would have given just about anything for a little more...bounce in my step.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"when you have nothing else to say, "Fwonk" is always the perfect thing."
"yeah well, fwonk"
--Devon
Fanaile Essence
Depends on your frame. If you're a tiny thing, C cups can seem quite large. If you're average frame, C cups are maybe average, and if you're a large frame, C cups are small.
~C
Check out the latest entry in the Between The Lines column!
Want the highest rated list to change? RATE those blogs, then!
I really appreciated the thought you put into this post, and I will definately take all of this into account. So little is known about breasts and their structural makeup. Sometimes I wonder if this is because we live in a male dominated society that could care less how women's breasts are structured as long as they exist. But it's nice to know that someone is doing the research.
It seems as if there just aren't very many medical and scientific studies into women's health. It started to fascinate me a few years ago when I'd heard somewhere that the average male who has heart attacks, can have 2-3 heart attacks before one actually kills them, while the average female who has a heart attack passes away the first time. My own grandmother passed away from her first heart attack only 2 days after going to see the doctor.
I found this quote on feminist.com, which was excerpted from Planned Parenthoods "Womens Health Letter" in May 1995:
Heart attack is the leading cause of death in American women, claiming 250,000 female lives annually, which is more than all forms of cancer. Yet, when the Survival and Ventricular Enlargement Study investigating team looked at more than 2,000 male and female heart patients at 150 hospitals and clinics throughout the U.S. and Canada, it found that women are diagnosed less promptly and referred for further tests less often than men.
To me, this is unacceptable. It frightens me that my doctors might not really know what's best for me heath-wise, or even how to treat or diagnose symptoms in a women. I try to learn as much about my body as I can, but its definitely hard to find the info sometimes.
~~Every human heartbeat is a universe of possibilites.~~
Gregory David Roberts
That's because women have lots of smaller heart attacks that go untreated, so when they have a major one, it kills them. They're less likely to go to the hospital when they have heart pain, because they interpret it as something else. So that heart attack your grandma had probably was not her first, it was just the first noticeable one she had.
~C
Check out the latest entry in the Between The Lines column!
Want the highest rated list to change? RATE those blogs, then!
And I will be when it comes to things like that. still, it makes me wonder why a fact like that isn't more widely publicized. it could help so many women.
Relax, smoke a bowl.. chill
"You give life your doubt
And it carries them out"-Me
Dont worry, but realize your body is ruled by negative and possitive energy. If you keep truely possitive, and if you quickly forget things instead of letting them eat at you, you'll live a lot longer. Worry makes you weak.. so try to keep your mind distacted or focused on one of your favorite place/day and if loves the only thing that makes you feel alive do that, whatever makes you feel alive or happy, you'll survive if you live by this(or at least be less likely to die of illness)... You seem like a reasonable, informed person, keep possitive, know its for the better. And remember, Ignorance isn't the only path to bliss, the knowledge to sort out the bad also can be.
~Random(general) advice...~
You may want to read into it a bit further...
Not to say that your information is incorrect; just incomplete. Singer and Grismaijer conduted their studies in an uncontrolled environment. And although they found a difference of some 125-fold between women who wore their bras 24 hours a day and women who never wore bras, there are a lot of other factors that have been dismissed in their study. They did not take into accordance the other risk factors, which can skew the results.
For example, women who exercise regularly - whether bra-wearing or not - are a lot less likely to ever develop breast cancer. Exercise causes even restricted "assets" to move slightly - and this movement massages the tissues and lymphatic nodes - thereby increasing lymphatic circulation.
Additionally, mothers - and especially those who breast feed - are much lower in risk. Studies have found that women who postpone having children or never have children never fully develop their lymphatic cleansing system in their breasts.
All in all, the lymphatic system depends on movement - just as when your feet swell after sitting for so long - it's the same for the "asset's" lymphatic system. If you wear the wrong size bra - and it completely restricts movement - you're at a higher risk. Some studies have even suggested women buy two bra sizes, one for normal use and the other to wear near the beggining of their... "monthly visitor"...when hormones cause the assets to swell.
Overall, great blog! But don't let one study sway you or scare you.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"when you have nothing else to say, "Fwonk" is always the perfect thing."
"yeah well, fwonk"
--Devon
Fanaile Essence
Thanks for the information! I know what you mean about the movement, but for me, that's where the issue with the bra came in. I used to wear two minimizing underwire bras often when I had to exercise, or if I could, I would choose to do some activity that didn't make my breasts move. All in all, I was on a vendetta to make my breasts move as little as possible, and with the bras, they complied.
~~Every human heartbeat is a universe of possibilites.~~
Gregory David Roberts
Hm...
Have you tried swimming? I would think that the water would help to take some of the strain off your back and still allow you some... "bounce in your step" (sort of speak).
Not that I should talk much - I don't know how to swim. But I know that everytime I see a doctor about anything, they're always telling me that it's the best form of exercise for - like - everything.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"when you have nothing else to say, "Fwonk" is always the perfect thing."
"yeah well, fwonk"
--Devon
Fanaile Essence
additionally, the more children you nurse, the more your risk of cancer goes down. Why? Because your breast milk is literally washing all of your built-up breast toxins out with it. Some people use this as an excuse not to breastfeed, saying (quite correctly,) that we are giving our toxic load to our babies...however, formula still has more heavy metals and toxic substances in it then breastmilk when the two have been compared. It is sad/scary that breast milk is contaminated at all; we would like to believe that breast milk is 100% organic and natural, but unfortuanly, because of the world we live in, everything has some degree of contamination in it. The most contaminated milk on Earth belonged to a tribe in Northern Canada (the Nunavik,) who still live a very traditional hunter/gatherer lifestyle...this is because toxins known as POPs (persistant organic pollutants) which are primarily flame retardants like Scotch Guard, get trapped in the food chains in the coldest places because of the lack of circulation of presipitation, and gets into the fat of the large animals that the Nunavik primarily eat.
Anyway, breast is still best,
Love,
Carrot
http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2003/09/17/pollutants030917.html
I think if you are small enough you might be able to get away with it. Pervy men will spot you in a second and stare. If my wife went braless she would knock someone's head off. Her size is a FF. It's a scary thought that one can get cancer while wearing a bra. My wife and i are always on the look out in case if anything is abnormal. Thanks for the heads up.
I never understood why some women would wear bras to bed, but if helps take away back, then it makes more sense. Even though my boobs are on the smaller size, I still love that moment at the end of the day when I set the girls loose.
I think it makes sense to have proper fitting bras, in the same way that guys are encouraged to wear boxers or boxer briefs if they have are have lower fertility. Don't be afraid to the girls out to roam for a little while, they'll sure appreciate the exercise.
:-)
It's the second thing I do, after taking off my coat!
http://www.progressiveu.org/blog/ediblewoman
I have to wear a bra to bed, but I only wear a sport's bra. I sleep on my side and on my stomach, and the girls kind of get in the way -- they usually hurt by morning if I don't wear something to support them; however, with this news, I may want to rethink that... :-/
~ ~ ~
"Put it before them briefly so they will read it, clearly so they will appreciate it, picturesquely so they will remember it, and, above all, accurately so they will be guided by its light." ~ Joseph Pulitzer
This is so weird. I never knew so many women wore bras to bed, to me it just isn't comfortable and I have heard it isn't as healthy. They also have bras though that are meant for bed, they have no wire or padding etc and are just for a little support, but not so much as to decrease circulation.
I have so many friends who tell me that I'm weird for wearing my bra to bed, but for me, I just feel more comfortable. I not very large breasted, but letting my ladies loose is a little strange for me... Then again, it's probably just another side effect of my past life. In any case, I've known that it's supposed to be bad for me for years, but my sister also told me that it would make my breasts shrink... I've always thought that they got in the way anywho, so I was never scared... But I never knew about the cancer thing. That might make me change my habits a little.
Never let the world get you further down, it already has the weight of gravity on your shoulders.
And the list of reasons to revert to nakedness continues...
Sustainably yers, http://www.progressiveu.org/blog/green-underbelly
Yeah. I have hear da lot about bras and if they are effective to wear all day lng. I remember seeing on the news where they said bra's with underwire are more likely to give you cancer. So I swithched to no-wire bras. Only thing is there is not much of a selection in no-wire. As far as wearing a bra 24/7, well I never did that. Good write and hopefully you won't have to go back to the doctor for it.
Bras are so uncomfortable. If I'm wearing layers, I don't wear a bra, because no one can really tell anyway. And I'm a 32D, so obviously busty women can do the same.
I need SEVERAL layers if I am to go braless in public. I'm only a C cup, but I have fabulous nipples! Very, shall we say, alert. They poke through most of my bras, even, so without....
http://www.progressiveu.org/blog/ediblewoman
Bit TMI here perhaps too, but I have a nipple piercing, which also tends to show if I'm wearing a thin bra/shirt. So unless I'm wearing a coat (which is nearly all the time now), I have to wear a thick bra. Or layers. Layers are awesome. If I'm wearing an undershirt underneath my shirt, I don't bother with a bra. As long as the shirt is tight, I really don't need one.
everyone in my house calls me super nipple girl, it's obnoxious!
Never let the world get you further down, it already has the weight of gravity on your shoulders.
At least something good can come of all this..
The new pick up line..
"I've heard in a harvard studys that wearing a bra too many hours a day can give you cancer"
:Oh really I better get this off then:
"Yes, and quickly, you never know when it'll strike.. and I'll have to sleep with you to make sure no one puts it on you while you're trying to sleep"
: Thanks a lot:
"yeah, its all good, I hear that massaging them helps the circulation and brings down the likelihood of cysts"
:Really, would you:
"Only for your health tho......"
*Dreams...*
But really, I hope you feel better, remember stress causes nearly all illnesses...that and virus, and radio/cellphone/computer singles... we might not glow, but I know..
So to get unstressed, go relax and let the breasts reign wild.. you can reverse my pick up for your femine needs..
"So a harvard breat cancer study says if i keep these puppies locked up to long"... ect
---
Everything, you have done, and will do, is chemically predisposed by matter, even the fact you are reading this message. You make no choices, only perceive a given reality.
You are chemical reactions, Zeros and ones, firing or not.
LMFAO. Excellent point.
You may like not wearing a bra to bed its comforting.
Yea. I have heard this before wearing your bra too much isn't really good for you. So like when your going to bed you don't need any support or to hide your nipples so let your ladies be free. You can even take your bra off when you are home alone or there is no reason to really have any support at the time.
i've never really worn bras to bed, I'd heard it was unhealthy.
Also, wear pajamas but not underwear, because your vaginal area needs to be able to breath a but. I'm comfy when i retire, in other words.
I've heard that about underwear -- never been able to do it though. lol
~ ~ ~
"Put it before them briefly so they will read it, clearly so they will appreciate it, picturesquely so they will remember it, and, above all, accurately so they will be guided by its light." ~ Joseph Pulitzer
I loved bras too. I would wear them to sleep all the time. However when I was diagnosed with breast tumors I couldn't wear them anymore. I am not saying that my tumors were caused by the bras but we never know. If I even tried to, with the surgery I couldn't stand them, the wires were torture. I had to find a new way to keep my girls from being victims of gravity. Fortunately, my sister was devolping and I would always see her buying "sports bras" so I gave them a try. And also fortunately I love them even more. I feel so liberated yet secure with them. I am a small size girl so I don't have trouble looking for them. But, for the big girls their are bras for you too. And there not only great for less stress but also for fashion i wear them when i want to put on string-strapped shirts and it looks awesome so try it girls. I hope I could have helped some girls out.
That's a scary thought. Wearing bras longer man cause cancer. I always worry about not wearing it enough.
This is news to me. I'd like to hear more about this study in the future.
I say we burn 'em!!
[Krst]
http://writing.progressiveu.org/story/casualty-letter
My Dr. Seuss Contest entry ^^
I would, but gravity's already hit me. Once I get out of bed, the bra goes on.
What about the tank tops with the shelf bras attached? That's very little support, but it might be enough for comfort.
I sleep naked, so nothing really changes for me.
-Sonja :)
"Democracy works only when you vote. When you don't take the time to vote for the candidate you find the least offensive, you run the risk of electing the candidate you find the most offensive."
I used to wear sports bras all the time (quite literally... I only took them off to change and take a shower). So the tank tops with the bras in them are a nice medium for me.
~C
Check out the latest entry in the Between The Lines column!
Want the highest rated list to change? RATE those blogs, then!
I wear bras all the time. I'm more comfortable with them on. It's scary to think that it could hurt me in the long run. But is there anything I can really do to prevent myself from getting cancer? If it wants me, it'll have me. It's just the way life is.
I was starting to feel weird because I have always hated wearing bras and have never worn one to bed. I'm a bigger gal (DD) but I can't wait til I get home so i can change out of my bra; this usually immediately follows kicking the shoes off!
JadePNK - It might help to see a chiropractor about your back pain. You might have a pinched nerve or some misalignment.
Also, most women wear the wrong bra size. It doesn't hurt to go to a place that offers free sizing help whenever your body changes (post or pre pregnancy/nursing, weight gain or loss, etc) or just to check. Measurements do not always cut it, you might wear a different size that you "measure" for, and these professionals can help you determine what really fits.
~ Kayote
Visit me at http://www.progressiveu.org/blog/kayote
I have to wear a bra during the day. As a DDD bordering on a G, if I go without one, it's very uncomfortable (and distracting to others when I walk). I'm really picky about mine - they have to be those lovely molded-cup underwire ones. Anything else just isn't enough support. I can't wear a soft cup or a sports bra, because 1) there isn't enough support, and 2) there's not enough separation. I hate the uni-boob look. There are two of these suckers, and I'd prefer that it look that way. Of course, everything roams free at night. I move around every 5-10 minutes at night, and if I wear anything to bed, it's completely tangled by morning, so I sleep naked.
I don't need drugs - I have genetics.