Allure: A Guide to understanding, appreciating and flaunting two provocative body parts

Breasts: An Owner’s Manual

We invite you, for a minute, to think of breasts.
They have been with us since we were born.  They have seen us through puberty, prom, and pregnancy.  They’ve been a source of curiosity, pride, and joy.  That is, when they weren’t a source of anxiety, pain or embarrassment.  We’ve labeled them and we’ve numbered them, but – please, God, no – we have never named them.  We push them up, flatten them out, squeeze them together.  We make them conform to our moods, our bodies, and our clothes.  Maybe we’ve even considered surgery.  Or had surgery.  Or had to have surgery.  We bless them, curse them, love them, and hate them.  And through it all, they’ve stood by us.  Sure, at some moments they’ve stood higher than at others, but every time we look down, they are there.  So in celebration, in fascination, and in gratitude, we present the first-ever Allure guide to breasts.  – DANIELLE PERGAMENT

Knocker Shockers

You probably think you know them pretty well by now.  And fine, maybe you do.  But we bet there are a few things you would be surprised to learn.  Such as:

• The sun makes them fall.  Gravity isn’t the only thing working against you and your breasts.  The sun also breaks down the collagen and elastin fibers in the skin of your breasts, making them sag faster, says Santa Monica dermatologist Karyn Grossman.

• Human breasts are unique.  We’re the only mammals whose breasts remain enlarged throughout our lifetime – rather than just while nursing.

• The chest gets wrinkles too.  Those fine lines between your breasts are often caused by sleeping on your side.  To treat vertical lines, dermatologists suggest a combination of injectables, like Belotero and Botox.  The results last longer on the chest than on the face because the chest isn’t exposed to the same stresses as the face, says New York City dermatologist Patricia Wexler.  – CATHERINE Q. O’NEILL

In 2012, Americas spent more than $1 billion on breast-augmentation surgeries.  That’s the approximate GDP of the Seychelles.

THEY’RE SPROUTING EARLIER.

Compared with the previous generation, twice as many girls are developing breasts as early as age seven.

5 Things to Know Before You – or Your “Friend” – Get Implants

• Bigger is not always better.  “I’ve changed more women to go smaller,” says Los Angeles plastic surgeon Steven Teitelbaum.  “Those who go too big can permanently damage their breast tissue and even their ribs.”
• Cup size isn’t everything.  Not only cup sizes vary among lingerie brands, they don’t denote shape, so there’s no point in asking your doctor for a D cup.
• You can’t copy another woman’s breasts.  “The size of the rib cage, breast width, and a dozen other factors determine the ideal size for each woman,” Teitelbaum says.
• Armpits aren’t the best entry.  The scar can be visible when you’re wearing clothes, says Teitelbaum.  And neither are nipples – an incision there can increase the risk of bacterial exposure and result in a hardening of the implant.  “For the average woman, the best incision is in the fold under the breast,” says New Jersey plastic surgeon Caroline Glicksman, who notes that the scar should look like a little red crease under the breast.  “That entry has the lowest complication rates.”
• Implants don’t lift breasts.  Breast lifts do.  A breast lift is a different procedure, without an implant. – C.Q.O.

HOW TO SPOT FAKES…

Because sometimes you can’t help but wonder.  Teitelbaum explains what to look for.

• Fake breasts have a defined, 360-degree border around the edges.
• Oversize implants create a wide, often bony gap between the breasts.
• If they’re too big, fake breasts don’t fall to the side when a woman lies on her back.
• From the side, fake breasts can look as full on top as on the bottom.
• The nipples point down.  Naturally, nipples point straight ahead or slightly up, even with a moderate amount of sagging.  If the implants are too high, the nipples tip downward. – C.Q.O.

36DD : Today’s average bra size.  That’s up two full cup sizes from 2002.

Confessions of a Body Double

Shelley Michelle may have the world’s most famous breasts – she has stood in for Julia Roberts, Sandra Bullock, and Kim Basinger.  We asked Michelle, who has spent 20 years as a body-parts model, what tricks she’s picked up from her years on closed sets. – ELIZABETH SIEGEL

• I always massage a moisturizer with glycerin over my breasts to given them a pretty sheen.  A shimmery body lotion is the best for emphasizing cleavage – I apply it in a heart shape along the top of my breasts.”
• “Posture makes a big difference.  Pull your shoulders up, back, and then down, suck in your stomach, and stand up straight.  And anytime I’m on a bed – sitting, lying, or rolling on top of someone – I glue my elbows to my waist to push up my breasts and keep my cleavage in a straight line.  I swear I’ve added ten years to some actresses’ careers using that trick.”
• “I live in a sports bra and always keep my breasts covered in the sun.  And I’m always exercising.  I do chest presses against the wall in the shower and yoga against the kitchen counter.  But you’ll never catch a breast double doing chest presses with weights.  Big pecs mess with your cleavage.”

To Your Health

You may have the world’s most lovely breasts, but if you aren’t doing whatever you can to keep them healthy, it’s not going to matter how great they look in an Agent Provocateur lacy demi-cup.  Sure, we all know we’re supposed to check for lumps.  And most of us do.  Sometimes.  And we know drinking to excess is a risk factor for breast cancer.  But maybe having a couple of drinks isn’t so bad…right?  Breast-health experts clear it all up for us. – E.S.

• Diet is less important than you’d think.  “When it comes to breast health, ‘superfoods’ is a total misnomer,” says Elisa Port, chief of breast surgery and codirector of the Dubin Breast Center at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City.  “There’s no hard evidence that almonds or kale or organic, hormone-free milk are associated with a lower risk of breast cancer.”  What scientists know is that obesity is a risk factor, as is habitual alcohol consumption, but the correlation only begins to appear when you drink in excess.  “We’re talking more than two drinks every day, seven days a week,”  Port says.
• Check yourself.  Do a monthly self-exam right after your period so you can monitor any changes.  Lie on your bed, raise one arm above your head, and check the breast and underarm on that side for lumps by making concentric circles or vertical lines.  Do the other side.  Then do it all again in front of a mirror.  Get checked out if you see dimpling under your breasts, a rash around the nipple, or retracted nipples.

NICE RACK!

We asked celebrities who has the best breasts in Hollywood.  And the Allure Anti-Sag Award goes to… (Spoiler alert: It’s a tie!) – JEFFREY SLONIM

• “I’m a fan of natural breasts, even though I have augmented breasts myself.  I love Scarlett Johansson’s breasts; they’re beautiful.” – Lily Ghalichi, Shahs of Sunset
• “Scarlett Johansson.” – Carmen Electra
• “I think Scarlet Johansson has really nice boobs.” – Christa Miller, Cougar Town
• “Halle Berry.  I’m obsessed with symmetry – and hers are in perfect symmetry.”  – Patti Stanger, Millionaire Matchmaker
• “Halle Berry has the best boobs on the planet.” – Katheryn Winnick, Vikings

Annie Hawkins-Turner has the world’s largest natural breasts.  Her bra size is reportedly 102ZZZ, and each breast weights 44.8 pounds.

Posted in Plastic Surgery on June 25th, 2013

Request A Consultation