Sorry but you should be wearing a bra even though you're not leaving your house.

Now that we are all officially in stay-at-home mode amid the coronavirus pandemic, many of our usual day to day routines are out the window.

Makeup? Probably not. Curled or straightened hair? Way too much effort. And, wearing a bra? Absolutely not.

The best part of finishing work for the day was taking off your bra anyway so why would we bother wearing it in the first place, if we no longer need to?

Here’s how you’re spending self-isolation according to your star sign. Post continues below.

But sorry boobs, that might come at a cost.

Despite the max comfort of going bra-free, there might be some long-term implications to the breast tissue if we stop wearing a bra altogether.

So, to understand whether we can really get away without wearing one for the foreseeable future, we spoke to renowned Sydney-based cosmetic surgeon, Dr Anoop Rastogi, who specialises in breast augmentation.

 

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A post shared by Dr Anoop Rastogi (@dr_anooprastogi) on Jun 30, 2019 at 3:43pm PDT

The first and more important question we want answered is: does not wearing a bra for an extended time cause damage to the breasts in the long run?

And sad news…

“Yes it does,” Dr Rastogi said.

“Your breasts are made up of two main components: fatty tissue and breast glands. The fatty tissue is lightweight but the glandular tissue is heavy and tends to weigh the breasts down,” he explained.

“The breasts are kept up and perky by ligaments called Cooper’s ligaments which run through the breasts from the skin to the chest wall like guy-wires to anchor and keep the breasts in their youthful position.

“If you’re larger than a B-cup or if you have a greater ratio of glandular tissue to fatty tissue (which you’ll know from your breasts getting larger and firmer with your monthly cycle) then the gravitational effect of not wearing a bra for an extended period of time will stretch Cooper’s ligaments and cause the breasts to sag, especially if you are jumping about or exercising.”

And unfortunately sports bras aren’t the answer either.

“Sports bras are great [for exercise]. They hold the breasts tight so they don’t bounce around and stretch the ligaments during exercise,” Dr Rastogi said.

But sports bras are best worn when you’re actually exercising. As they’re specifically designed to keep the breasts tight to the chest (so they don’t bounce up and down while doing physical activity), they can actually be too tight and provide too much support to be wearing all day.

Meaning, it’s probably best to stick with your everyday bra.

But thankfully, Dr Rastogi did confirm that bras aren’t necessary all the time.

“While you’re lazing about it’s not necessary to wear a bra all the time, unless you’re quite big. However it’s very important to wear a supportive bra when exercising,” he said.

So, think of it like this:

When you’re studying, working, doing chores or exercising, it would probably be best to pop one on. Especially, if you want to avoid back pain and sagging in the future.

But after that’s all done, it’s time to get comfy and take it off!

Feature image: Getty.