Dr. Laura Senes, ND

Chest care

 

Posture

Not only is good posture an important part of maintaining healthy joints and ligaments, it benefits the entire body in many ways.  When a person slumps forward it compresses organs, which can lead to restricted breathing and digestive issues.  Improved posture can help with these issues.  Other benefits may include less pain, more energy, and increased balance.

Shoulders should be upright and not rounded.  Shoulder rounding causes the chest, shoulder and hip muscles to become tight, and the muscles of the upper and middle back to become weak.  Your chest should be lifted slightly by pushing your shoulder blades down and back.  The head should be kept back in a neutral position, with the chin parallel to the floor. This will strengthen neck muscles and prevent shoulder rounding.

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Bras

Approximately 80% of women wear poorly fitting bras.  Some signs include red marks, indentations, or abrasions of the skin.  Poorly fitting bras can cause pain in the breasts, back, rib cage, shoulders and neck.  This can lead to poor posture in an effort to alleviate the pain.  In some circumstances bras may even restrict blood flow and breathing.  

With a properly fitting bra, the majority of support should come from the underband.  Shoulder straps should not leave imprints, and you should be able to run your finger under them comfortably.  The underband should fit firmly around the ribcage without sliding.  The center part of the bra should lie completely flat against your breast bone.  The cups should lay flat against the body, without gapping or bulging.  

When finding the right fit it is helpful to keep sister sizes in mind.  In order to size down you decrease the band size by two inches and increase the cup size by one letter.  To size up, you increase the band size by two inches and decrease the cup size by one letter.​