Not only is it the best source of nutrition for a newborn, a breastfeeding mom can burn around 425 to 700 calories a day—without ever having to set foot on a treadmill. Celebrities swear by it. Miranda Kerr credited breastfeeding for speeding up her metabolism after she gave birth to her son. But while women are quick to point out the many benefits of breastfeeding, the truth of how badly it can wreak havoc on your breasts is rarely discussed.
After your baby weans off breastfeeding, the breast tissue contracts but the skin fails to catch up with the shrinkage, giving “a deflated water balloon” appearance. Many complained hollowing of their bras. A friend confessed over dinner: “Mine got so saggy, I actually don’t like to have sex with my husband unless I’m wearing a bra or squeezing my arms together”
“Breast atrophy, or deflation, after pregnancy is one of the commonest complaints from our patients consulting on breast enhancements,” says Dr Chia Hui Lingfrom SW1 Plastic Surgery Clinic, “and options to restore fullness and buoyancy to the breasts include using your own fat, breast implants or with a breast lift.”
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Natural Breast Enhancement
Very few resources are better than your own fat for augmenting your breasts. For many, it is a fantasy come true – to be able to fill their breasts with fat from the tummy and thighs. Fat is “harvested” using liposuction and purified, before re-injecting into the breasts. The process of purification concentrates the fat cells and remove impurities, such as oil, fibres and blood.
Only a portion of the fat injected will survive to give the lasting volume. Same reason why more than one session of fat transfer may be needed to achieve the desired results . According to Dr Chia, meticulous processing and injection technique are vital to ensure more fat remains and less complications. Done right, fat transfer gives natural lasting results. Poorly performed, fat transfer could end up with lumpiness, oil cysts, little fat retention and calcification. It is crucial to select a plastic surgeon skilled in fat transfer and a clinic equipped with reliable and fat processing equipment.
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Implants for Breast Augmentation
Implants, although not au naturale like your own fat, give a reliable and instantaneous oomph to empty breasts. Definitely better suited for women who wants to a more noticeable upsize and perkiness, which fat transfer may not achieve. Or those with no body fat to offer. “The latest generation of implants are tear-drop shaped and form-stable, allowing the surgeon to give natural results even in ladies who are flat-chested,” added Dr Chia, “and they are housed in very strong shells, unlike earlier generations, so the need to change every ten years is no longer a necessity.”
But what are the drawbacks with breast implants? “Tight scarring around the implants, also known as capsular contractures, leakage, implants moving out of position and unhappy with size are common reasons why women have repeat surgeries after breast augmentation.
A word of caution: avoid breast fillers. Not only are they no longer approved in some countries, breast filler complications are common and very difficult to treat.
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Breast Lift Surgery
A breast lift, or mastopexy, is an attempt to reverse the sagging process by removing excess skin and shaping the breasts from within. It is often combined with breast implants or breast reduction, depending on you want a increase or decrease in cup size. The need to remove skin also means that it leaves a scar on the breast, but most of the time cleverly hidden around the areolae alone (periareolar scar). If there is a lot loose skin, a vertical scar, or possibly a horizontal scar may be needed.
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Yummy to Mummy Workshop
To learn more on post-pregnancy beauty fixes, hear from a panel of medical experts, from plastic surgeons to O&G specialists, who will give valuable insight on the latest innovations and treatments that can help you not only restore your beauty but take it to the next level. The workshop will be held on 4 August 2018, Saturday, 2 – 4PM, and we have a discount code for you! Early bird discount: 10% off before 20 July, enter code <Early20>.
