by Michelle Wilkinson

Created on: February 16, 2009

It is no wonder women are so insecure about their bodies when they are continually force-fed the notion that to be attractive you have to be tall, thin, skinny, big-breasted, with perfect teeth and hair. It impossible to escape images of the 'beautiful people' in magazines and newspapers, on the television and in the movies, and instead of women learning to love themselves and make the most of what they've got, many see plastic surgery as the answer. Breast enhancement surgery is a particularly popular procedure because it is relatively cheap and the results speak for themselves. But why should women put themselves through all that pain in order to attain the perfect' physique, particularly as there is nothing wrong with smaller breasts in the first place?

For starters, they are a lot more practical for the more active woman. A sports bra is a must-have for any woman who likes to run or engage in activities involving significant movement, whatever bra size she may be. However, it is a lot easier to find a sports bra which keeps everything in place when you are a smaller size than if you have huge breasts which need a lot of protection and support.

Women with large breasts cannot get away without wearing a bra, unless they want to show off their significantly sagging breasts. Fashion lends itself well to women with a smaller cleavage, as women can often get away without wearing a bra, and often the clothes are designed to accommodate smaller breasts.

Many women are unhappy when they look in the mirror and see that the top-half of their clothes are not filled out, but what is to say that having larger breasts will make them anymore content? More and more women are having surgery to correct what they see as a problem, choosing to have breast implants put into them, even if they do not look particularly realistic. There is far too much emphasis on size what about a woman's natural shape? A woman's breasts regularly change size anyway during her period, if she puts on or loses weight, and if she has a baby. It is therefore important for women to appreciate their breasts whatever shape and size they are.

As more women have been getting breast implants, both women and men seem to have developed a distorted perception of what constitutes normal' sized breasts, particularly since there is no such thing as normal. Breasts come in all shapes and sizes, but the prevalence of breast implants has made women and men more aware of larger breasts, leading women to question the size of their own natural breasts compared to women who are artificially inflated. Clearly there is going to be a difference, but at least their breasts are real! Surely natural breasts are better whatever size they happen to be.

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