Why were women flatter chested in the past?

Question

I watched a documentary called "The 1900 House". In this documentary they commented on how women were flatter chested at this time. What are some reasons for this? Please cite sources if possible.

Answer 1

One likely prospect is our diet. Scientists have speculated that growth hormones in our food have been affecting our development. Note the phenomenon of girls hitting menarche at younger and younger ages in recent decades. Also, the Japanese (whose women are generally less endowed in the chest than American women) have begun to show the same changes as they've imported more American food. Coincidence? Perhaps not.

Answer 2

Can't cite sources, as I don't know for sure. But my GUESS is that nowadays, we're fatter people.

Also, there are so many hormones being pumped into the animals that we're eating that it's interfering with puberty and overall development.

Malnutrition also could've been more of a problem, in general, back then.

Also, add cosmetic surgery to the mix and you've gotta admit that our perception of "flat" has been altered. Maybe back then, those were considered big, or average-sized boobs, whereas now we'd consider them flat (comparatively). I didn't see the documentary, so I don't know what sizes we're talking about here.

One final note, women also could've been either binding themselves or not eating purely to achieve that look. I DO know, for a fact, that flappers aimed to have a boyish physique because the silhouette was considered more attractive at the time. So before getting into those tinsely dresses you think of from the time, they often bound their chests. Said simply - maybe they just LOOKED flatter. *shrugg*

Answer 3

I think it has to do with the fact that people were smaller then, period. Smaller feet, shorter heights, makes sense that a smaller frame would have smaller breasts.

Another theory is that we have so many growth hormones in our foods these days (especially meats) that they cause us to develop at a faster rate (did you know that growth hormones take a chick to a full grown chicken in 21 days?)

I've noticed that Europeans (who don't allow these hormones in their food) are generally smaller. (Try finding a pair of size 12 shoes over there!) Not that you won't see a fat European. It's just that their fat appears more "natural" whereas in America, we look more bloated by artificial means.

Also, whenever I eliminate these foods from my diet, I get smaller, even when I still eat the same amounts. So go figure...

Answer 4

I am betting you know the answer to this already! Silicone and implants! I know at least 4 women in college I can think of that were proud to show me what they did after their surgery healed. They didn't pay as much as I thought they cost either! Now it seems that men are starting to like women with smaller breasts because they know they are real. Wow! Wouldn't THAT be a disappointment if you had gone through all that and then fell in love with a man who hated phony implants!!

Answer 5

One reason could be because people were smaller in general. There were not many fat people. If a women gains a lot of weight some will go to her chest making her bigger.

Answer 6

Because they didn´t use to do breast implants. Wherever you travel nowadays, the % of women with bigger chests is higher than 10-15 years ago. Just check your question with plastic surgeons !!

Answer 7

the women of that time were very skinny, breasts are made up mostly of fat.

the corsets also flattened them a bit and they used to wear layers of clothing which gave the imperession of smaller breasts

Answer 8

Um, Doctor 90210 ring any bells?????

Media presenting celebrities and models as these perfect things force women to become "better", thus surgery, pills, bla bla bla.....
Pitiful, isn't it?

Answer 9

Simple, they were thinner then.
We have become fatter and fatter through the years.
Breasts are simply fat deposits.

Answer 10

They were thinner and a flat chest was in style back then.