Breast Cancer and Bras – The Great Debate

Breast Cancer and Bras – The Great Debate

Does wearing a bra increase the chances you’ll get breast cancer? There has been some rumor mongering in this regard. In this article, we take a look at whether there is any correlation and where the rumor comes from.

There is no correlation between wearing bras and an increased risk of breast cancer. So says the American Cancer Society. In fact, the Society doesn’t deny or affirm an increased risk of cancer. Why? No medically relevant studies have been done on the issue, thus nobody really knows. That may seem stunning given the concerns surrounding breast cancer, but it is a simple fact.

So, how did all these rumors arise? The web is a wonderful place, but it is also one where anyone can say practically anything and get away with it. The bras-breast cancer rumor appears to have arisen from the “Dressed to Kill” book. The book was written by Sydney Ross Singer and Soma Grismaijer, two anthropologists. They assert that a bra restricts the lymph system causing toxins to build up and cancer to occur.

Ross Singer and Soma Grismaijer are two interesting characters. Singer earned a degree in anthropology from Duke University. Grismaijer has no known degree, but is believed to be an optician. It is unclear how these two non-medical figures feel qualified to draw conclusions on breast cancer any more than you or I, but they did when they self published Dressed to Kill.

The conclusions in Dressed to Kill are drawn from the idea of studying women in different situations. Singer and Grismaijer looked at women wearing bras versus women who do not. They allegedly found that those not wearing bras showed rare cases of breast cancer while women wearing bras suffered far more instances. There is no consideration of other issues such as diet, environmental causes and so forth.

To really get a taste of the views of Singer and Grismaijer, you need to consider their work after the bra “studies”. At last glance, they were self publishing books on the evil of sleeping horizontally. This apparently is the cause of everything from prostate cancer to Alzheimer’s Disease. They are strong proponents of the idea that we should all be sleeping on a slant.

It is easy to dismiss these two characters based on their haphazard approach to studying medical issues and their unorthodox views. That being said, the relationship between bras and health should be studied closer. I am pretty sure tight pants don’t give men prostrate cancer nor will a tight hat give you brain cancer. Still, the fact nobody has apparently every looked closely at how bras relate to breast health is somewhat shocking. Until then, I’ll wear my bra, but it should be looked at extensively.