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Interesting Facts About Breasts
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Shape and support
Breasts vary in size, density, shape, sag and position on a woman's chest, and their external appearance is not predictive of their internal anatomy or lactation potential. The natural shape of a woman's breasts is primarily dependent on the support provided by the Cooper's ligaments and the underlying chest on which they rest (the base). Cooper's ligaments, also known as the suspensory ligaments of Cooper, suspend the breasts from the clavicle and the clavi-pectoral fascia. As their fibers run around and through the breast, these ligaments support the breasts in its position on the chest wall and maintain their normal shape. The breast is also attached at its base to the chest wall by the deep fascia over the pectoral muscles. In a small number of women, the frontal ducts (ampullae) in the breasts are not flush with the surrounding breast tissue, which causes the sinus area to visibly bulge outward.
Some breasts are high and rounded, and protrude almost horizontally from the chest wall. Such high breasts are common for girls and women in early stages of development. The protruding or high breasts are anchored to the chest at the base, and the weight is distributed evenly over the area of the base of the approximately dome- or cone-shaped breasts.
In the “low” breast, a proportion of the breasts' weight is actually supported by the chest against which the lower breast surface comes to rest, as well as the deep anchorage at the base. The weight is thus distributed over a larger area, which has the effect of reducing the strain. In both males and females, the thoracic cavity slopes progressively outwards from the thoracic inlet (at the top of the breastbone) above to the lowest ribs which mark its lower boundary, allowing it to support the breasts.
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