How ditching your bra could actually make breasts perkier

I cling to my bra like a child clings to their favourite blanket. Is my bra uncomfortable, sure; but is it comforting? Absolutely. I would rather leave the house wearing a bra on the outside of my shirt then leave without one at all. That may be because I have large breasts and when you have large breasts you spend much of your life worrying about the fact that you have large breasts.

The buxom also spend a great deal of time gazing enviously at the pixie-like waifs who can opt to go braless — those who know the blissful freedom of wearing a strapless dress in August.

The size of a woman’s breasts can determine more than just her sartorial choices — I’ve never known the pleasure of strapless anything — it also shapes her experience of the world, especially when jogging with a crummy sports bra down a busy city street.

One French researcher suggests we rethink the importance — mon dieu, the necessity — of a good foundation garment.

Professor Jean-Denis Rouillon of University of Franche-Comte spent 15 years studying the breasts of women ages of 18 and 35 — and his research suggests bras may not be necessary for young women.

Even more startling is Rouillon’s claim that bras may make young women's breasts saggier.

These results come out of Rouillon's preliminary research — he has yet to publish the official study. Still, the findings are fascinating, including the discovery that the women who went braless had their nipples lifted an average of 7 mm over the course of one year. He also found this group reported less back pain.

Will women toss their bras out the window en masse as a result of his findings? Not this woman. After more than two decades of being a slave to underwire, I’m to old and too set in my saggy ways to change now. I am a prisoner of lace and I will be until the bitter droopy end. But I fully support those who chose freedom over bondage. Enjoy those 7mm!

Would you ever consider going without a bra? Tell us in the comment section below.