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Studies repeatedly find that up to 80% of women wear the wrong-sized bra, and report discomforts after a day of wearing their bras! And yet, we still put up with it, like it's a fact of life!
A recent study done in Korea shows a more encouraging trend where a study with 163 women found that 92 of 163 patients (56.4%) were wearing a correctly-sized brassiere. But that still means that 43.6% or 71 of these women were wearing the wrong-sized bra! A number that should be much smaller.
Furthermore, the study found that in the group of women studied, the smaller busted women were more likely to wear a correctly-sized bra, as compared to fuller busted and bigger sized women. Moreover, patients with A-cup breasts tended to wear larger brassieres, whereas patients with B and C-cup breasts tended to wear smaller brassieres than their actual breast cup size. We're of the conclusion that there are a few factors going wrong here:
- understanding bra sizes is complex and confusing, and many women still aren't very familiar with how to find the best fit. As the study on these 163 women found, "women exhibited a poor ability to choose an appropriately-fitted brassiere even when allowed to try on several sizes.9 A study performed in South Korean young women showed that participants often wore brassieres purchased by their mothers without previously fitting them,10 and tended to focus on the beauty of the brassiere, rather than on accurate sizing."
- there is also a lack of consistency between lingerie brands globally with respect to how underband lengths, cup volumes and size gradings between sizes are accounted for, which then confuses women even more.
- as many mass market brands carry very limited sizing, with just 3 to 4 bra cups in their size range, namely A, B, C, D, fuller busted women are squeezing into these cups and just making it work.
Ill-fitting brassieres can lead to musculoskeletal problems in women due to constrictions in your ribs, shoulder arches and compromises in your posture to fit into the ill fitting bra. And as women tend to wear incorrectly-sized brassieres as their cup size becomes larger, musculoskeletal problems are further exemplified as wrong-sized bras not only constrict your posture, they also do not provide any support at all for the heavier weight of your breasts.
So, help, how do we best explain how to gauge my correct bra size, as many of us have studied and gotten so confused by size charts, and poured over our our measurements, but still aren't in a perfect fit bra! I still can't wait to take my bra off at the end of the day!
As the Korean study, "Analysis on the Difference between the Practical Brassiere Size and Real Breast Volume" by Hyun Ho Han, MD, PhD from the Department of Plastic Surgery, Asan Medical Center University of Ulsan College of Medicine found, bra size cannot just be measured by subtracting the underbust measurement from the top bust measurement as there is significant variation in the lateral and upper border of the breast, and as the size of the breast increases and the border of the breast extends beyond the ante- rior axillary line, the deviation becomes even greater. And in simple terms, this means that your body shape, breast shape, density of your breasts and its position on your chests also change your ultimate breast size! The top bust - underbust guidance is just what it is! A guidance!
To break it down, there are actually 3 parts to fitting a bra:
- the bra itself - the style/cup/cut is as important as the sizing, and to also make sure the brand you are selecting from has a wide range of cuts, styles and sizes so you can find the right one to fit your body!
- your breasts - understanding your breast measurements and then, to also understand your body shape, breast shape and fullness of your breasts is critical. And be mindful that all this may change as your hormones change and as you enter different stages of your life, such as pregnancy and breastfeeding, puberty and menopause, and even when you gain or lose weight
- how you put on your bra - how you then put on your bra every morning, then makes a huge difference too! Make sure to scoop all the contents in and to adjust the bra to your body - bras are usually adjustable on the underband with at least 3 hook and eye stages and on the shoulder straps
At XIXILI, our full bra range runs cup sizes from A to I cup, that gives you 9 cups sizes to find one that works best for you, and then to match we have underbands ranging from 65cm to 110cm. You will have full cup bras with more coverage and fuller breasts, demi cup bras for slighlty less full breasts and potentially diverged breast shapes, 5/8 and 3/4 cup bras for more smaller cup breasts, and half cup bras to serve certain body shapes.
Do drop by one of our stores to be fitted in person by one of our trained perfect fitters, or if you prefer to shop online, please do make sure to try your fit on the 3D avatar after you have inputted your measurements, body shape and breast shape!