breast: 85 science backed facts about the breasts
“It is my body. And I like my body. And I like my breasts. And no, they are not fake”.
I decided to start this article with the quote above because the human breast has been an object of fascination, awe, personality, femininity, sexuality, controversies, and mysteries. Together we shall go through a well-researched science- backed facts about the breast. Continue reading.
1. It is a modification of the sweat glands.
2. They are present in all mammals
3. They have religious, art, and cultural symbolism.
4. They become prominent in females as a hallmark of pubertal development
breasts, men, beauty & a woman’s confidence; facts
5.Breasts do add to a woman’s beauty.
6.The breasts are men’s first point of attraction in a woman before other body parts.
Friedrich Nietzsche, a German philosopher aptly puts it:
“there are many good inventions on earth, some useful, some pleasing: for their sake, the earth is to be loved. And there is such a variety of well invented things that the earth is like the breasts ofa woman: useful and pleasing.
7.Breasts sizes can cause crisis of confidence in a woman. This quote of Mokokoma mokhonoana explains it all:
In her 20’s, a woman’s breasts double her self-esteem. In her 40’s, they halve it.
on breast shapes, sizes and personality; facts
8.Breast sizes could be tiny, small, medium, large, and extra large
9.The breasts come in different sizes and shape
10.The size and shape of the breast depends the age, race, and genetics of the individual
11.It also depends on physiological changes like menstruation, lactation, and pregnancy.
12.The left is slightly larger than the right.
13.They size increase after marriage.
14. Size do not affect its primary function in women which is for breast feeding.
15.There are about 9 recognised breast shapes. They are:
asymmetrical, bell-shape, east west,athletic, round, tear drop, slender, side-set, and relaxed
Check your breast shapes here
16. A controversial research has linked women breasts shapes and sizes to their personality.
Check where you belong below.
Breast shape, size, and personality with shape depicted as fruits
| Breast shape and size | Fruit shape | personality |
| tiny breasts and medium nipples | Plum | Intellectual and professional |
| Small breasts with big nipples | nectarine | Passionate, goal-getter, easily gets angry |
| Medium breasts with medium nipples | Apple | Care-free and adventurous |
| Large breasts with nipples pointing downwards | Pear | Sees things from a bright side of life, full of hope and optimism, good sense of humour, very patient. |
| Large perky breasts with large nipples | melon | Kind-hearted, easy going, very reliable, friendly. |
| Extra-large breasts and nipples | grapefruit | Unique, considerate, and creative |
| Medium breasts with nipples pointing outward | Mango | Friendly, moral, ethical, good sense of judgement, very responsible |
| Large breasts with nipples pointing outward | pineapple | A leader, explorer, liberal, romantic, sociable, loves fantasies, full of imaginations. |
| Large breasts with medium nipples | Papaya (pawpaw) | Risk taker, less emotional, independent minded and a leader |
| Small breasts pointing downward with large nipples | cherry | Wise, peace-lover, loyal, ready to learn, and very spiritual |
| Small breasts with large nipples | cherry | Energetic, has an aura, attention seeker |
| Symmetric (same size) | Lemon | Scholastic, unique, emotionally intelligent |
Table showing a summary of the different breasts shapes and sizes and the personality linked to them.
17. Some experts claim there are proven exercises to either increase or reduce its size.
18. There are exercises to lift the breasts and make them firm. Some are:
dumb-bell bench press, push-ups, inclined dumb- bench process, and dumb-bell fly.
19.There is no one size fits them all in bra sizes. Every woman has a peculiar bra size.
on anatomy of the breasts; facts
20.The breasts are not always two in number, it may be more than 2 in some women. The extra one(s) is known as supernumerary breasts. It is due to failure along the line of development of the breasts.insert image here
21.they develop from the same structure as the brain
22. The line of development of the organ extends from the armpit to the pubic area. It is along this line the extra breast is formed.
23. Some women can be born with no breasts or one.
24. It is made up of the skin, fats, nipple, areola, and ducts (tiny tubes).
25. It is the fat pad that gives the breasts size, shape, and consistency.
26. The fat pad is subject to hormonal changes during menstruation and pregnancy.
27. The nipple and areola are made of contractile smooth muscle that points out from the breasts.
on breasts and menstruation; facts
28. Just like the uterus(womb) cyclical changes also takes place in the breasts monthly.
29. they are subjected to the effects of estrogen and progesterone.
30. In some women, the breasts become engorged, painful and tender during menstruation- ‘breast fullness’.
on the breast function; facts
31. controversies on the function of the breasts rages on.
32. but the primary function of the breast is the breastfeed and nurture the baby.
33. they also aid sexual pleasure and satisfaction.
34. they are a symbol of femininity.
35. they have social characteristics
on the nipples; facts
36. There are about 8 nipple types:
bumpy, puffy, inverted, protruding, hairy, unilateral, flat, and supernumerary nipple types
37. The type of nipple in a woman may make breast feeding difficult.
38. Nipple colour and areola with varies from woman to woman
39. Nipples may be more than one in a single mammary gland
40. The nipples and areolas are erogenous zones. They are areas of sexual excitement and arousal.
41. They can sometimes leak or express fluid even when you are not pregnant or breastfeeding.
42. Changes in nipples can be a signal to breast cancer.
43. Breastfeeding may sometimes cause nipple injury. This is known as ‘nipple cracking’.
on sagging of the breasts; facts
44. Funny enough, the greatest worries of women over their breasts is not cancer but sagging.
45. Sagging of the breasts is known scientifically as ptosis
46. Wearing bras has not been proven to prevent sagging
47. Contrary to widespread beliefs, breastfeeding DOES NOT sag the mammary gland.
48. Naturally, the breasts must sag with age. He said it allMarty klein:
Remember, breasts don’t sag as we get older, they relax.
49. Cigarette smoking, increased number of pregnancies, gravity, weight gain or loss has been shown to cause sagging of the breasts.
50. Breast lift surgery known as mastopexy is done for sagging boobs.
HEARD OF BREASTS IRONING IN NIGERIA? CHECK HERE
on the breast in men
51. they are rudimentary
52. Men born with large breasts due to chromosomal abnormalities have Klinefelter syndrome.
53. Usually big breasts in men is known as gynaecomastia
on breast augmentation and reduction surgery; facts
54. Some women may increase or change the shape and size of the breasts surgically using breast implants. This is known as breast augmentation.
55. Implants are used for breast augmentation.
56. Implants can make treating and diagnosing breast cancer difficult.
57. Augmentation can cause loss of sensation in the nipples.
58. Surgery done to reduce the size of the breasts is known as breast reduction surgery. It involves removal of excess fat pads and other tissues.
59. 60 percent of breast surgeries in the western world is for cosmetic reasons.
60. Breasts sizes can also be increased by hormonal breast enlargement.
61. Cosmetic surgeries of the breast have its complications i.e. can fail.
62. Large breasts or extra-large breasts can cause neck or back pain.
63. Some women do undergo reduction surgery to relieve back or neck pain.
64. Reduction and augmentation are controversial issues in our times due to moral, ethical, and religious leanings.
65. Men may undergo reduction surgery for gynaecomastia
66. Right now, there is a campaign by female rights and equality groups to go topless.
on breast screening test; facts
67. The routine breast tests are breast self-examination (BSE) and mammography.
68. Breast self-examination is a routine way of checking for lumps(seeds), swelling or distortions in the breast.
69. It is done when lying, bathing, or standing in front of the mirror.
70. Self examination was introduced to ensure early diagnosis of breast cancer.
71. But it may cause anxiety, unnecessary breast surgeries, and needless biopsies in women
72. Mammography involves the taking of x-ray images of the breast.
73. Mammography is best for women less than 40years.
74. It is more accurate than self-examination.
on diseases and breast cancer; facts
75. Just like every other organ, diseases affect the breast.
76.They can be cancerous or non- cancerous
77. the cancerous type are the must studied and talked about
78. Its diseases commonly present as a lump
79. Not all lumps is cancer but all should be investigated thoroughly
80. Cancer is the most the most studied and talked disease of the breast
81. Some diseases come without symptoms and can be detected by a mammogram
82. They can be affected by stretch marks.
on breast surgery
83. Total breast removal surgery is called mastectomy.
84. Most people that did mastectomy may choose to have breast reconstructive surgery.
85. Mastectomy is a treatment modality for cancer and other diseases
I will end this article with the breast quote by Jennifer Cruise
Breasts are very important for women. Their clothes just don’t hang without them.
READ ALSO: science backed facts about the appendix
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RESOURCES: Principles and Practice of Tropical Surgery
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Great work there
thank you niyi
Tanx doc for sharing, very educating
you are welcome anne
Great job. Really commendable.