About Breasts…

Flat, perky, saggy, bodacious! We have heard the various adjectives described of them. Over the years, just about every set of "Ta-Ta's" will have fallen into each category. This is because women's bodies are continually changing. A most prosperous blessing to bra manufacturers throughout the world.

"We must. We must. We must increase our bust." - Ancient chant done to a breast increasing exercise.

The average sizes of beasts go from a size B at age 13 to a size C at age 16.

13: Size B

14: Size B

15: Size C

16: Size C + (trending towards full adult bra size at this time)

This can be quite the growth pattern. It is especially confusing for some late-blooming young women who leave for their summer vacation with arms crossed over a somewhat washboard chest. They then return the next semester barely able to contain these new massive lumps that seemed to come out of nowhere.

Then there are those women who are considered extremely blessed will a well-endowed buxom, then decides to lose some weight. It is completely unfair that the first noticeable loss will be in the area of the breasts. Why? Why? Why?!!

Women give birth to children and their breasts grow, shrink, sag, and do all kinds of unspeakable acts in the process. We wish we could only get a handle on the circumstances. Other than a good pair of jeans that no longer fit, we experience sadness when we must say goodbye to our favorite bra. This is a big deal. It is extremely difficult to find a bra that we actually like, let alone call our "favorite".

As we women age, along with our many other body issues arise, we learn to accept these changes. Maybe one day, even celebrate them.

A woman's body produces hormones that stimulate the growth of the breast's milk duct system from around the 24th week of pregnancy. Hormones trigger lactation and milk production for nurturing newborn babies until our individually preferred weaning time.

Most women I know have felt at their most beautiful and empowering times during nursing. This will be the child's only real nutrition in the first several weeks of life! To consider the sanctioning emotion a woman feels as she provides vital nutrition for her child's growth, it is a sad state of affairs that breastfeeding in public is so controversial.

One of the most beautiful scenes to gaze one's eyes upon is a woman nursing her child. This is how women were engineered; designed by a most High Power. It is one of the most natural cross-species processes. How could it be considered obscene?

Is it because we have sexualized women's breasts far too much in our culture that we can't comfortably view them in their natural state of exertion? Is it an OCD thing? Personal preference? Have we become too fearful or easily offended in our culture?

Is there anything concrete to the beliefs that breastfeeding in public can lead to sexual arousal in men and possibly rape? There has not been any proof of such theories.

Many believe this controversy is on its way out. The sooner the better

“When they [breasts] are huge, you become very self-conscious...I've learned something though, through my years of pondering and pontificating, and that is: men love them, and I love that.” ― Drew Barrymore

Suffice to say, boobs are everywhere in the media; Film, magazines, and online. You just need to find the latest music videos and you will surely find women's breasts gyrating in numerous fashion. A recent Google search of the word "boobs" brought up about 126,000,000 results in 0.28 seconds!

Articles from topics such as real vs. fake, what not to say, what not to do, Instagram pictures, and hashtags.

So what is all this fascination with our hoo-has? Here are a few reasons that average men explain of their obsession with breasts:

1. Guys like soft, round things.
2. They feel that they are biologically programmed.
3. It is part of our culture.

According to a 2012 Live Science Report "Attraction to breasts "is a brain organization effect that occurs in straight males when they go through puberty. Evolution has selected for this brain organization in men that makes them attracted to the breasts in a sexual context, because the outcome is that it activates the female bonding circuit, making women feel more bonded with him. It's a behavior that males have evolved in order to stimulate the female's maternal bonding circuitry." [3]

In another study, it was determined that men who were poor and/or hungry prefer women with big breasts and financially stable men who had just eaten prefer women with smaller breasts. These determinations seem to be more on the nurturing side than on the sexual. But I guess the lines could get a bit blurred here.

As with just about any other part of the body, breasts can get sick. Sometimes a little sick and sometimes extremely sick. The most common. Most conditions are non-cancerous but do need medical follow-up to get a proper diagnosis.

1. Mastitis - an infection of the breast tissue that might happen during breastfeeding. It is rare, causing pain, redness, tenderness, and swelling. Body aches, breast engorgement, fever, chills, and abscesses are also symptoms. There are many home remedies as well as pain medication for symptom relief. [4]
2. Hyperplasia is an overgrowth of cells, most often occurring on the inside of the lobules or milk ducts. There is an increased risk of breast cancer so a visit with your doctor is crucial.
3. Cysts are those fluid-filled sacs found most often to be benign. They rarely need to be treated unless they are painful and need to be drained.
4. Fibroadenomas are benign tumors that are solid and occur most commonly in women between the ages of 15-35.
5. Intraductal papillomas are small growths occurring in the milk ducts. They may cause nipple discharge. These are usually removed with surgery and no further treatment is necessary. Increased risk of breast cancer is very minimal.
6. Sclerosing Adenosis - enlarged lobules that make up small breast lumps that may be felt and also cause pain. Although they can be mistaken for breast cancer, a biopsy will be needed to rule it out. Treatment is not needed for this conditions.
7. Radial Scars might also look like breast cancer but are not cancer at all. Once they are removed, additional treatment is not necessary. [3]

While it is necessary to keep our hooters healthy, it is best not to overthink or overstress when we find an abnormality. Just follow one step at a time. While we are here, let us observe a moment for the many women who have suffered or are in the thick of their battles with breast cancer. We all know at least one.

Time to have some fun with it!

"I do wish my breasts were bigger. Not big... but less small." - Calista Flockhart

"People make jokes about my bosoms, why don't they look underneath the breasts at the heart? It's obvious I've got big ones and if people want to assume they're not mine, then let them." - Dolly Parton

"My legs are nice, my lips are shapely, and my breasts are pretty. They popped up when I was 11 and they weren't small then. I was teased, but now those kids wish they had what I have!" - Queen Latifah

"Scientists now believe that the primary biological function of breasts is to make males stupid." - Dave Barry