As much nastiness and negativity that can be found on the internet, there’s a whole lot of good, extremely useful information too. Earlier this year, I stumbled upon an article on xoJane. In it, author Amanda Macfarland talked about how she experienced an intense itchiness on her left breast. By the summer time, it moved to the other breast. She scratched her skin raw. Eventually, she saw a doctor but because there was no rash associated with the itching, she couldn’t make a diagnosis. She did prescribe a cream that would work for two days at a time before the issue returned again.
With no relief, Amanda finally surmised that perhaps it was her bra that was causing the itch. She googled bra allergy and that’s when she discovered something horrific. There were several women who had experienced the same type of itching and rash she had. Bras that were manufactured in China, specifically the Victoria’s Secret brand. In fact, in 2008, a group of women brought a class action suit against the lingerie company. A law firm that represented one of the women sent the same type of bra for testing at a lab of their own and found that the bras tested positive for formaldehyde. Victoria Secret denied the allegation. Later, the executive director of The Formaldehyde Council released a statement saying:
“synthetic materials used to make clothing—such as the bras in the story are not treated with any products derived from formaldehyde. It’s even harder to imagine that the bras were inadvertently contacted with formaldehyde — that’s because it quickly dissipates in air, water and sunlight. It’s telling that the plaintiff’s lawyers haven’t released their lab test specifics — especially since false positives for formaldehyde are common in trace amounts.”
Still, there is something in the bras that is causing adverse reactions for numerous women. I found the story fascinating so I shared it with my sister and her friends. And it was a good thing I did. Less than a month after I told then, my sister’s friend also had a similar red rash breakout on her breasts, only in the area covered by her bra. I can’t remember if she said the bra was from Victoria’s Secret or not. When she went to her doctor to inquire about the irritation, she didn’t seem surprised. Her doctor told her there are certain chemicals used to maintain the elasticity of the bra that may irritate the skin. And sadly, washing your bras in the washing machine allows more and more of those chemicals to be released into your skin. Which is why a bra that may have never bothered you in the past, may suddenly become unbearable.
She threw that particular bra away and is avoiding that entire brand from here on out.
But she’s not the only one. I’ve also experienced itchiness that subsided the minute I took my bra off and returned when I put that particular one back on. And these came from Forever 21. So perhaps this practice of including skin irritating chemicals in the fabric is not exclusive to Victoria’s Secret. I’m sure several brands are guilty.
Since most of us are unwilling to go completely without bras, here a few things you can do when you notice itching and irritation on your breasts.
- – Throw that particular bra away.
- – Hand wash your bras. (This one is a pain in the neck. Seeing as it’s far easier to just throw it in the machine. But while convenient, it’s also less safe, particularly for the sensitive skin in that area.)
- – Buy chemical free undergarments or organic fabrics
Have any of you ever experienced itching or irritation from your bras? How did you treat it?
