Pregnancy and breastfeeding can impact the appearance of your breasts, with breast sagging being common during and after pregnancy as their size and shape alter. Whilst this sometimes causes negative feelings about body image, sagging breasts are perfectly normal. Everyone’s breasts are different, as is their experience with how their breasts change during pregnancy. It’s important to keep in mind that every woman is different. One woman’s body will react differently to another’s due to pregnancy, so try not to compare your personal experience with anyone else’s. Your body will go through weight gain and weight loss over a short space of time. How much your weight fluctuates can be determined by diet and lifestyle, but pregnancy puts other stresses on your body, and you just have to go with the flow.
With this guide – we provide you with information about why breasts may sag during and after pregnancy, the impact of breastfeeding, breast implant sagging, and what you can do to prevent sagging breasts after pregnancy.
Tips for preventing breasts from sagging during and after pregnancy include:
- Maintaining skin health and promoting elasticity by exfoliating and moisturising
- Healthy weight maintenance
- Wearing a support bra
- Strength training and yoga
- Staying hydrated and nourished
How Do Breasts Change During and After Pregnancy?
During pregnancy, the body goes through major changes – it is, after all, supporting and growing another life. This is no mean feat. Whilst it is of course an incredible journey for any woman to go on, it can have very noticeable effects on the body. One impact of this change is breasts becoming fuller and heavier during pregnancy, causing the ligaments supporting the breasts to stretch: in turn causing breasts to sag.
Why Do Breasts Sag After Pregnancy?
Your breasts go through different changes both during and after pregnancy. They grow larger during pregnancy, becoming fuller and heavier as the body prepares you for breastfeeding. As the skin stretches, it can sag post-pregnancy.
Following pregnancy, breasts can again change in appearance because of the body going through further major changes. As they fill with milk, breasts will become larger and as they empty, they reduce in size. If breastfeeding, this continuous expansion, and contraction is one of the main contributing factors to sagging breasts. As the skin is stretched breasts are unable to hold their previous shape.
Does Breastfeeding Cause Saggy Breasts?
Whilst breastfeeding can impact the appearance of your breasts, it’s not the primary cause of sagging breasts post-pregnancy. Your breasts will increase in size during pregnancy as your body prepares to breastfeed, whether you intend on breastfeeding or not. Therefore, it’s the change to your breast shape during pregnancy, which contributes most significantly to breast sagging, as opposed to the act of breastfeeding alone.
There are also many other factors that can influence changes to breast shape and contribute to breast sagging, as they impact breast firmness over time, such as:
- Age
- Genetics
- Weight Gain/Loss
- Smoking
Do Breast Implants Sag After Pregnancy?
The actual breast implant itself will not change at all during or after pregnancy, but the supporting tissue around the implant will. As the breasts themselves are changing, with ligaments stretching, it is possible for breasts to sag even with breast implants.
If you become unhappy with the appearance of your breast implants after pregnancy – you can rectify this with a breast augmentation procedure, and you will regain the shape you so loved before.
How to Prevent Saggy Breasts After Pregnancy
Looking after your well-being following the birth of a baby is essential for both body and mind. What you eat, drink and how often you exercise will contribute to you getting your breasts as close to their pre-pregnancy condition as you can.
Here are a few tips for preventing breasts sagging during and following pregnancy:
- Moisturising: exfoliating and moisturising your skin during and after pregnancy can help to keep skin supple, maintain its elasticity, and help prevent sagging.
- Maintain a healthy weight: weight gain during pregnancy is completely normal, but rapid weight gain can stretch the skin even more, preventing it from tightening after pregnancy.
- Wear a support bra: well-fitted, quality support bras can be worn throughout pregnancy and after to support breasts and prevent excess sagging by helping you maintain breast firmness.
- Exercise: strength training and yoga can help to tone the pectoral muscles that support the breasts. This can give the appearance of firmer, lifted breasts. Before getting back into exercise, it’s always a good idea to consult with your GP on how quickly you can start safely working out after pregnancy.
- Stay hydrated and nourished: a good diet and hydration can keep the skin supple and help to maintain elasticity. Drinking plenty of water and eating foods rich in vitamins C and E can contribute to overall skin health during and after pregnancy.
Whilst these lifestyle practices can help to prevent breasts sagging, changes to breast shape are a natural part of the body changing that isn’t something you can completely stop. If lost, the only way to completely regain breast firmness and get back to your pre-pregnancy breast shape is through breast surgery.
Breast augmentation surgery is one way to achieve noticeable, long-standing results. At Enhance Medical Group, we have a range of procedures available, including breast augmentation and breast lift. Our team of Patient Care Coordinators and Surgeons will help determine the best option for you to achieve the results you want, providing you with advice on how to return your breasts to their pre-pregnancy condition. Enhance will always explain the benefits of looking after yourself prior to and following any procedure. This combination will reap the best results. Our patients are delighted with the outcome of the breast surgery we provide and often comment that they look even better than before the pregnancy. Whatever your concern, you will find a solution at Enhance Medical Group, and our team will be more than happy to assist you.
Breast Augmentation After Pregnancy: Important Information for New Mothers
It is important to state that there are some conditions that apply for a patient to be eligible for breast surgery in general, especially after pregnancy. Your health, safety and satisfaction are our ultimate priority.
For Enhance to consider someone for surgery, they must demonstrate a BMI of 32 or below. In some cases, this can be 30, depending on the surgeon.
We will only consult with a patient for breast surgery 6 months after childbirth (provided they do not breastfeed).
If a patient has been breastfeeding, we are happy to consult with them 6 months after they have ceased breastfeeding or stopped producing milk.