Age 13 - G cup... really?
When puberty hits
When puberty hits, our teenage girls will find their shape changing and submitting to a bra fitting hits the top of the 'most embarrassing experiences' list. Women are bigger than they were a decade ago and curvier women are strutting the catwalk in 14+ clothing ranges. Less understood is that even the young, slender women are often bigger in the bust. It has become quite normal for a 13 year old with a small frame to need a G cup bra, but she is usually wearing a 10D. The cups are too small, the back is too big, there's little support. The comfort level is low but it was the best her local lingerie store could offer. By age 17 or 18 she's fully grown, but there can be more changes due to weight loss, weight gain, menstruation and hormonal changes.
Progressive lingerie companies are addressing this by producing bras up to K cup that appeal to very young women with slim backs. Brava is focusing on the needs of teenage girls and we know they prefer moulded bras because there is no nipple show, they like thin straps for summer tops and they want bras similar to those worn by their smaller breasted friends. Sheer materials and bras that their mothers or grandmothers like to wear are out for this group.
Banning the Bounce Participating in school sports and high activity pursuits demands a need for teenage girls to minimise breast bounce. Slight movement is helpful and aids the lymph flow. But excessive bounce can cause irreversible damage to the cooper ligaments inside the breasts. Underwired, wirefree, encapsulation and compression sports bras for the larger cup now start at size 8 (some at size 6) and are designed to banish the bounce. Young girls overly conscious of their bust size will often hunch, bringing shoulders and head forward, to make the bust less obvious. But hunching sets them up for shoulder tendinitis, aching neck and headache. Standing upright, with good posture in a correctly fitted bra gets the breasts up where they belong and makes them look smaller. They like what they see, feel confident and stand taller. |
Some of the girls visiting Brava want Mum's help..BUT other Mums' hand the job over to Brava fitters who are adept at maintaining communication while minimising embarrassment. We love it when the girls, who arrived in tears, laugh and say how much better they look in the right size bra and how supported they feel. Most importantly they stop feeling abnormal.
The change in natural bust measurements has been attributed to increased oestrogen levels that start at puberty (often as young as 10), chemicals in our food, in medications and in our environment.
It's time for young women to feel more confident about embracing and celebrating their shape by wearing correctly fitted bras that are supportive, modern and pretty. It liberates them and lets them feel self assured, ready to face the amazing challenges that will come their way.