1. BRA SUPPORT
(1) Bra straps. Among the variety and different kinds of bra components, shoulder straps function significantly in
providing support to the breast mass. However, bra wearers complain about the fitting of shoulder straps. It can cause embarrassment when the shoulder straps become loosened and drop off a person's shoulders. However, a too-tight bra strap can cause headaches and lead to serious nerve damage (Storey, 1995). If a strap digs into the shoulder, it not only causes disfigurement of shoulder tissues, but also puts pressure on the cervical nerve (Health Watch of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Centre, 1998) and interferes with arterial or venous drainage (Tedeschi et ai, 1999).
(2) Sports bra. With health concerns, a sports bra is designed to control the excessive movement of the breasts, which is especially useful for larger breasted or sporty ladies. During vigorous sporty exercise, there is much strain on the breasts, causing them to bounce up and down in vulnerable ways (Stamford, 1996). Without adequate support from the bra, the breasts may sag or appear unsightly. Moreover, the wearer would feel discomfort and have occasional injury due to stretching of the soft tissue and ligaments of breasts.
(3) Strapless bra. For a strapless bra, the uplifting function heavily relies on the underwires and underband. The rigid underwires of this self-supporting bra make uncomfortable compression for the wearer (Nanas, 1964). Non-breathable rubber spots on the wide and tight underband result in itching, breathlessness and pain rashes for the wearer. As the pressure from the bra is placed solely on the elastic band, it may injure the wearer's lymph nodes (Walker, 1998).
2. BRA CUPS
(I) Bra cup seam. Bra cups are generally manufactured with a variety of cut and sewn pieces in order to provide a structure which adequately fits the wearer's breasts. However, many wearers feel uncomfortable as the seams irritate their skin (Osborne and Harold, 1999). A survey of 400 female athletes reported that most bruising and skin irritation occur on the seam across the nipple area. Referring to some bra designs, the annoyance caused can come from (a) seam edges, (b) protuberances of stitches in (c) binding. Problems will be more severe if the seams are thick and bulky or the seam is over- locked by pestering threads.
(2) Cup fitting. A bra cup's 3D shape can be created in many ways such as seaming, darting, pleating, gathering, structured knitting and moulding. To fit the 3D curve of a woman's body, sophisticated pattern construction, knit- gauging or mould design is necessary. Otherwise, the body shape cannot fit into the cup, or can even bulge at the sides. The curved shape of bra cup edges should also be close fitting: when designers draw the pattern of a bra cup, they should consider the fitting of the bra cup curve.
3 . BRA UNDERWIRE
Many women want uplifting support provided by an underwire, but also hate its stiffness and pressure against their inner bodies. Problems associated with underwires can be caused by inappropriate curve diameter and arc length of the wire, and discomfort caused by the wire poking through the fabric or chaffing against a wearer's skin (Murray and Michael, 1999). There are two layers of bindings covering the wire in order to avoid the stiffness. However, when the bra is repeatedly washed the binding surface, especially at the bar tack area near the centre front, may be worn out, the underwire can partly pierce through the fabric and become a danger to the consumer (Brown and Teresa, 1998). The international news reported that two British women died during thunder as their bra wires were made of metallic materials that conducted electricity (Oriental Daily News, 1999).
Medical research (Singer and Grismaijer, 1995) has claimed that tight bras might inhibit the normal function of the lymphatic system and lead to a build-up of carcinogenic compounds in the constricted areas. A two-year study of breast cancer involving interviews with nearly 5,000 women (half of whom had breast cancer) revealed that women who had breast cancer usually wore tight bras (King, 1997). The excessive pressure on the underbust can cause a barrier for the removal of toxins from the breast and this increased the probability of breast cancer (Silverman, 1998). In addition, wearing a bra, especially a constricting one with underwires, could hinder normal lymphatic flow and lead to anoxia (lower than normal oxygen content) which relates to fibrosis and increases cancer risk (Reed, 1996).
4. BRA SHAPE AND SIZE
It is often reported that 70 per cent (Pechter and Edward,
1999) or more of women wear the wrong size bra. Badly fitted bras can lead to health concerns, especially back problems. However, obtaining a proper fit is hindered because most bras are mass-produced thereby providing a balanced garment sized by way of average bust girth and cup size. Such construction does not consider that one's body may not fit perfectly within the so-called standard. The variances in the human body over time or the difference among individual shapes are not considered in commercial bra design. A particular bra will not fit two women exactly the same, even though they may have the same bust girth and cup size (Murray and Michael, ]999). A perfectly fitting bra is important as women can have different breast shapes, bust distance or distribution of breast muscles. Ashizawa et at (1990) showed that female breasts could become well developed after wearing a 'well-fitted' bra once a week for three months. This reduces the problem of breast deformation, especially for those with pendant breasts.
5. ELASTIC UNDERBAND
Bras having tight elastic bands and rib plastic bones might affect the sternum and press directly on a woman's lymphatic system (Fleischman and Marcia, ]999) thereby causing redness, soreness or even breast cancer. The stressful elastic underband would create rashes or oedema due to the poor ventilation and perspiration.
Especially for the strapless bra, the vertical wiring hugs the breasts with support mainly given by the underband; this will increase the pressure and will hold the underbust uncomfortably.
6. HOOKS AND EYES
One Taiwan hospital reported that increasing cases of skin inflammation were caused by metal bra hooks and eyes, probably because of the hot weather and poor perspiration (Taiwan TV, 2000). The thickness and bulkiness of back hooks would increase chafing to the skin. Besides, the too- tight fastener would lead to the back of the bra riding up.
CONCLUSION ~
Increased attention to the comfort and fit performance
of the bra marks the concern of people about perfect bra design. Indeed, poor bra design can create both physical and physiological problems for the human body. The survey shows that women thought that bra components such as bra straps, cups and underwire are areas commonly causing discomfort. The research cited in this paper shows that inadequate support or excessive pressure would cause disfiguration or injury of breasts. Besides, for bra cup design, great care is needed to avoid seam irritation, bad fitting, improper shaping and sizing. Attention should also paid to the usage of underwire, in particular the curve diameter, arc length and material of the wires. Improper accessories and fastenings such as underbands or hooks and eyes on the bra can produce the unsatisfactory effects of bra design. In addition, the shape and size can directly affect the fitting of the bra and unhealthy problems would also be caused by this.
Undesirable effects such as disfiguration, distortion, rashes, arching or throbbing would be harmful to the human breasts. Therefore there is a continuous need for design innovation and improvement of bras for rectifying and alleviating those problems. As breast size and shape vary greatly between individuals, the perfect design of bra size and style are important. With an aim to achieve a perfect bra, designers have a strong drive to develop a super quality bra with high performance and proper usage of components and materials.
Read more: Evaluation and Analysis of Bra Design
Article in Design Journal, The · November 2001 DOI: 10.2752/146069201789389601
No comments:
Post a Comment