Why are women supposed to wear bras in our society?

[raccoon]

I know, so your boobs won't flop. If you're not jogging or doing something else active, such as aerobic exercises, what does it matter?

Decades ago I was told, so your boobs wouldn't sag later on in life. But that's soft tissue so it's going to sag anyway.

I can see if a woman is wearing something tailored or fitted, but if it's a loose shirt or whatever.... :shrug:

Is it just so onlookers won't be offended? Or to make money for Maidenform, Bali, etc.?

[Midlodemocrat]

1. Because I don't want a broken ankle.

[supernova]

3. ...

:rofl:

[yellowdogintexas]

2. if you are um, well endowed, it is easier on your back and spine

also cooler, believe it or not. I would have heat rash without one

Before bras, there were other mechanisms to support the female breasts.

[supernova]

4. Yes, thank you

also, I don't want men staring even more than they do at my chest.

[redqueen]

6. Yes and yes.

Plus, I think it's more comfortable than going braless.

[Deja Q]

7. Believe it or not, not all men want to gawk.

Okay, many men want to look, but also try to be gentlemen and turn our gaze back to the eyes and converse.

I never liked human nature, but then I think Mr Spock and Doctor Who are better role models anyway... :crazy:

[applegrove]

11. I once went bra less while walking downtown during university.. I got comments.

Your boobs bounce all over the place unless/until they sag if you are of a certain size. It is just better to keep them in order.

[philosophie_en_rose]

13. Exactly!

Bras are very important to my comfort. They're only a problem, when people don't choose the correct size or type.

[RadiationTherapy]

5. It definitely helps the sag, but it is an "onlookers" based phenom in general.

Where I live, many women go without.

[raccoon]

8. I go without at home most of the time.

If I go out to check the mail or something, I may put one on, or sometimes I think of somebody sees me, oh, well.

[my2sense]

18. I do as well

It's the first thing I take off when I come home.

[guitar man]

9. I don't know

I'm a big fan of the braless look myself. :evilgrin:

[MedleyMisty]

10. If I don't wear one, it hurts when I jump

So I just always thought it was the female version of the jock strap.

Plus I don't like the idea of walking into a cold store or something and suddenly everyone's looking at my nipples.

[sniffa]

12. It's a conspiracy by the patriarchal society

to give women breast cancer, and further assert their dominance.

And don't even get me started on Big Deodorant.

[edbermac]

14. Well, maybe as Marlon Brando observed in Last Tango In Paris

"One day you'll be playing soccer with those things."

[Rabrrrrrr]

15. So that the cancer industry has someone to buy chemo

(and, for the larger breasted woman, to save her back and spine)

[SeattleGirl]

16. I don't know that we're "supposed to" wear them.

I mean, I don't think there's an ironclad rule about wearing them, but I know that personally, it's better for me that I wear one.

[Deja Q]

17. To make it more difficult for them to mechanically service vehicles?

[originalpckelly]

19. It looks weird, like I opened the pages of national geographic without one...

:P

[Guava Jelly]

20. To create another obstacle between me and the goods?

:shrug: :dunce:

[RedShoes]

21. I wear one religiously...

and still pass the pencil test in my thirties. So the soft tissue will sag, but by how much depends on how well you are locked and loaded.

[Deja Q]

22. What is this 'pencil test'?

You put a piece of paper over them and trace their image?

:shrug:

[moriah]

23. Lift, put pencil under, drop.

If the pencil stays, you fail the pencil test.

As a DD in high school I passed the pencil test.

(ETA: I fail it now at close to 30, but I've also gained and lost quite a bit of weight. I may weigh now what I did in high school, but my body is NOT the same...)

[Deja Q]

24. Well, I can still see how that'd come in handy if you needed to grab something yet not put it down.

But that's just me...

A DD in high school and you passed it - sounds impressive, actually... A DD, you could otherwise be like Twiggy and by 30 anyone with the same endowment would still fail. (Besides, it's about who you are that counts most; the soul is eternal, even if the carriage it's in becomes feeble.)

[moriah]

26. I've definitely never been Twiggy....

... but yeah, I figure even if I'd stayed a constant weight I probably wouldn't be as perky as a 16-year-old. :)

One thing many guys don't realize about boob sizes is that a DD on me may be very, very different than a DD on, say, a person who was 5'7 and had a larger ribcage. (This brings up a gripe that I've had for a long time with reading erotica written by men, at least crappy erotica that actually tries to mention an exact bra size when they describe women. They really don't understand how the numbers crunch, and so they describe a tiny but busty woman as a 40 C -- I've been FAT and never had 40 inch ribcage.)

[NewJeffCT]

40. I've wondered about that, too

the bra size thing in literature where they mention 40+ something for the bra size like it is Dolly Parton's boobs on a thin woman... I even remember that from the movie "Saving Private Ryan" where the guy talks about some woman being a 44 something?

I've heard it often enough where I thought maybe I was wrong about my ideas of a woman's bust size, because I remember being more impressed with a woman that was a 32 or 34D than I was with a woman who was a 40D.

[moriah]

25. It really is more comfortable....

... to wear one when you are well-endowed.

At least if you're moving any faster than a very slow walk.

I do take mine off as soon as I get home (and I don't put it back on to go and check the mail, my neighbors can laugh all they want if they're watching) but I've gone grocery shopping braless a few times, and even the walk around the grocery store starts to get uncomfortable without some support.

[sarge43]

27. I usually don't unless I'm wearing a fitted or filmy top.

But then, I'm a charter member of the itty bitty titty committee.

[SOteric]

28. So that hetero men can think and function in society.

[zanne]

29. It's cultural.

I really enjoyed the 60's and 70's, when bra-wearing was completely optional. Now, the societal pressures are back to wear one.

[LiberalEsto]

30. To torture us

same as the high heels

[zanne]

39. High heels are so bad for you!

All of your weight is shifted to the front of your foot, causing back problems that you'll only notice once high heels go out of style.

[WritingIsMyReligion]

31. I wear 'em during the day, even at home. I have never found a bra uncomfortable.

It never occurs to me to take the bra off until I take a shower or get ready for bed--they're not uncomfortable at all for me. For the most part I forget I have it on. Then again, I'm not exactly well-endowed; I'm not really endowed at all. I can't say, judging from some of the comments here, that I'm sad about that, though. :rofl:

[Critters2]

32. We're supposed to wear 'em so men won't see our nipples.

That's the one and only reason. There's no physiological reason why one's muscles won't support one's breasts. They do just fine in cultures where women don't wear bras. We wear 'em to save men the trouble of fighting the urge to stare at our chests. That's it and that's all.

I don't wear a bra, don't own a bra, and wouldn't know what size to buy if I had to. I do wear camisoles--so men can't see the nips, cuz I know how hard that is on 'em--, and I am not flat chested (I think I'm a 36 or 38). But I won't wear a bra. Which drastically reduces my risk of getting breast cancer.

[raccoon]

37. Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner. nt

[PassingFair]

33. Mine comes off the minute I hit the door.

It's sitting beside me on my desk as I type. :)

I went through the 70's and most of the 80's
without wearing one, even *gasp* at work.

We wore halter tops without bras, the
"bra strap" look was a no-no.

I find them uncomfortable and I resent wearing
them all day.

[DarkTirade]

34. So if I'm not planning on going jogging, I shouldn't wear comfy sneakers?

:shrug:

[datasuspect]

35. i prefer to see unharnessed fun bags

womens is naturally beautiful

[MilesColtrane]

36. To prevent the collapse of Western Civilization...

About half the population would instantly start staring, drooling, and forget what they were supposed to be doing.

[WinkyDink]

38. Not to be leered at by creepy old guys?

[stuntcat]

41. I hate them

I was just thinking yesterday that I almost wish I didn't have boobies at all because bras are a pain in the ass and they slow me down more. I have to straighten them out, then pin them, then turn them around.. and I have to wear certain bras with certain shirts, especially in the summer. I just want to slip on any shirt I want and go.

I really do wish I was flat as a boy. It would be one less cancer to worry about to.

[One_Life_To_Give]

42. So you don't step on them in your old age

Take a look at some of the old National Geographics. Those poor women in Africa had them hanging almost to the waist.

[noonwitch]

43. I can't speak for all women, but I wear one to prevent back problems

My back hurts if I go braless for too long.

[MissHoneychurch]

44. So my n* don't get sore

when I don't wear a bra my nipple rub on the fabric and get sore.

[montanto]

45. I'll speak for my wife.

Her nips are so prominent that you could see them through a down jacket, and since we work around high school students, its not a good idea to let the girls loose. She has to wear what we call her "bullet-proof" bra at work. Otherwise she just wears a sport top. But otherwise, if she wears a t-shirt with nothing under, it looks like she's got a pair of 45 caliber bullets in her shirt. Very distracting to men and embarrassing to her.

[Writer]

46. Running without a bra?

Ow!

[IntravenousDemilo]

47. And also, why aren't women permitted to go topless in public just like men?

OK, actually they are legally allowed to do so in Canada, but 99.99999 per cent of them don't exercise that option, so it works out much the same as if it were illegal.

[Breeze54]

48. Back/shoulder pain --- comfort and it looks better in public for the well endowed!

There are times when you want to appear stylish, less-top heavy and not
as conspicuous and a good fitting bar can make your figure look younger!

http://beautiesbeautytips.blogspot.com/2007/10/shaping-up-twin-assets-right.html

[FloridaJudy]

49. So we have a place to stash our MP3 players.

Since manufacturers frequently fail to put pockets in women's clothing. What? You don't have earwires emerging from your cleavage?