Looking After Your Breasts

It is essential for every woman to know how to care for her breasts because it will help ensure both their attractiveness and their health.

Breasts are highly valued as a sign of femininity. However, breasts can present an entirely different set of problems from any other part of the body, and these can include sagging chest muscles, swelling and tenderness before menstruation, difficulties arising from breast feeding — and cancer! This is why women must learn to understand and care for their breasts.

Breast care begins with exercises to strengthen the pectoral (chest) muscles which tend to become slack with age. Most keep-fit routines include some helpful exercises like swinging the arms in a circular movement. Swimming is another method. Opinion varies as to whether wearing a bra helps prevent sagging breasts: comfort should be the deciding factor. However, some women prefer to wear a bra only when breasts are swollen such as during pregnancy or lactation, or when doing energetic sports.

Breasts may feel full and cause some discomfort just before menstruation. This can often be alleviated by taking extra vitamin B and by reducing the salt intake to avoid water retention which is frequently the major cause of the swelling. 

Mothers who wish to breast feed should make preparations before the baby arrives. If your nipples are not prominent, then the month before you give birth, you should massage them between the forefinger and thumb to help them stand out more. A nightly application of lanolin cream will help to keep the breasts supple while you are doing this.

Once breast feeding begins, problems may occur. These include sore, cracked or inflamed breasts due to an infection. For sore breasts, apply lanolin after each feed and expose the nipple to the air at some time during the day. For the latter two difficulties, stop feeding on that side, express the milk by hand and see your doctor. It is still possible to continue feeding from the other breast while the sore one is treated. 

Lumps in the breast can occur because of a wide variety of reasons. Most often these occur during normal changes of the menstrual cycle or because of small cysts (fluid-filled lumps of tissue) or tumors (fibrous growths) which are harmless. Sometimes the cause is more serious, and that is why it is especially important for women to recognize any changes in their breasts by giving them frequent, thorough examinations. 

Breasts should be examined regularly each month. Women of childbearing age should carry out a check immediately after their period, preferably on the same day of the cycle every month.

Undress to the waist and sit or stand in front of a mirror. Look first for any changes in the size, shape or texture. Also check the nipples to see if there are any obvious changes.

Then lie down, raise one arm behind your head and feel the breast of that side with the other hand; use the flat of your hand, not your fingertips. Gradually slide the hand around and over the breast area, moving towards the centre of the breast and eventually to the nipple. Look out for any thickening or lumps; nipple changes such as drawing in, sensitivity or discharge; pain and discomfort. Once you finish with the first breast, examine the other in the same way. 

If you detect any changes, see your doctor immediately for a more thorough examination. Often there is nothing to worry about, but if there is breast cancer, early detection can bring successful results. For this reason breast care ultimately means that you are caring for your life.

True Enemies of the Skin

Healthy skin is a valuable asset to anyone’s appearance, whatever their age.

First impressions of a person make a lasting impression, and among the details we first notice about others are their facial features and their skin.

For thousands of years, women especially, have been using lotions and creams to keep their skin silky-smooth. Legend has it that Cleopatra bathed in milk to preserve the beauty of her skin. Today it is indeed a proven fact that milk contains fruit acids currently being hailed as the most significant anti-aging cosmetic discovery! New and costly products are constantly being developed, offering the promise of a more beautiful and above all, more youthful skin.

But all will be in vain if the true enemies of the skin are ignored or a blind eye is turned. The enemies’ list is long and sometime scary.

Enemies’ lists

1. Baking in the sun may feel good and a beautiful bronzed tan may look good, but it is the worst thing that can be done to your skin. The sun’s ultra-violet rays can cause wrinkling and skin cancer. (Skin cancer is the most common of all cancers. It accounts for nearly half of all cancers in the United States. More than 2 million cases of non-melanoma skin cancer are found in this country each year. Melanoma, the most serious type of skin cancer, will account for about 68,130 cases of skin cancer in 2010 – American Cancer Society)

2. The wind dries and toughens the skin. Cover up on windy days – even if it means to wear a scarf to protect your face – and use a moisturizer regularly as preventative measure.

3. Dry air, whether hot or cold, robs the skin of moisture. In winter use a humidifier or boil a kettle in your bedroom before going to sleep. Plants are also good humidifiers since they emit water vapour.

4. Smoking is bad for your skin. Nicotine constricts blood vessels, interferes with the flow of oxygen and nutrients to skin cells, and can emphasise crow’s-feet. (Women smokers may develop crow's-feet earlier than women who don't smoke. According to Dr. Weiss, smoking makes you unconsciously squint as your eyes try to avoid the smoke's irritating and drying effects – MotherNature.com)

5. Hot baths can take moisture out of your skin. The longer the soak, the more moisture you lose. Go easy on these, as well as hot showers.

6. Poor nutrition affects the whole body, but the skin may show it first.

7. Inactivity means sluggish skin. Exercise increases blood flow and bathe the skin in its natural moisturizer – sweat.

8. Facial exercises designed to fight wrinkles may instead actually produce them, since they tend to crease the skin into set patterns.

In conclusion, for skin care, simpler is often better. For instance, you’ll find that wearing protective clothing to shield yourself from the harsh elements is a better method of skin care than using very expensive beauty creams.

By Hendrik de Villiers

My beautiful world