Are Women Better Off Without Their Bras?

Do women need bras? A French study says brassieres are a "false necessity."

Women who go braless may actually have the right idea, new research suggests.

According to the results of a 15-year study in France published Wednesday, bras provide no benefits to women and may actually be harmful to breasts over time. Read more

The Link between Bras and Breast Cancer

Is there really a link between tight-fitting bras and breast cancer? Medical researcher Syd Singer says the case is "open and shut."

If you didn't burn yours in the 'Sixties, you might want to put it away now. "Bras cause breast cancer. It's open and shut," says medical researcher Syd Singer.

The Singers became breast cancer sleuths in 1991. On the day Soma discovered a lump in her breast, the husband-wife team was studying the effects of Western medicine on Fijians. In the shower, Syd noticed that Soma's shoulders and breasts were outlined by dark red grooves. He remembered a puzzled Fijian woman asking his wife about her brassiere: "Doesn't it feel tight?"

"You get used to it," Soma had replied.

Could bras be constricting breast tissue, Syd wondered, hampering lymph drainage and causing degeneration? Read more