Boobs! They are both awesome and weird. You probably feel like you know everything about yours since they're on your body, but you'd be surprised — there are some seriously crazy boob facts. Behold.
- A lot goes into the anatomy of a breast. Female breasts are made of [1] fat, nerves, veins, arteries, breast tissue, and connective tissue.
- There are eight different kinds of nipples. There's flat, "normal," puffy, inverted, and more [2].
- Six percent of people have an extra nipple. Not that common, but not totally uncommon [3].
- Nipplegasms are a thing. Oxytocin is released [4] when nipples are stimulated, which is what causes vaginal orgasms.
- The world's largest bra size is 102ZZZ. As seen on TLC's Strange Sex [5].
- Your left is probably bigger than your right. Even if you can't tell, your left boob is probably slightly bigger than your right, which is the norm for most women [6]. Even Jennifer Lawrence admits [7] her boobs are uneven!
- Nipple hair is normal. If you have it, you're not alone, and it's nothing to worry about [8].
- One in eight women will eventually be diagnosed with breast cancer. There are 10 things every woman can do [9] to help prevent it.
- Your boobs typically grow for two to four more years after you get your first period. Your mosquito bites really did grow [10], even when you thought they wouldn't.
- The size changes every month. You're not imagining a fuller bra. Your hormones change [11] during your period and ovulation, which can cause bigger (and achey) breasts.
- Smoking cigarettes can cause sagging. Yikes! A University of Kentucky study [12] found that "smoking breaks down a protein in the skin called elastin, which gives youthful skin its elastic appearance and supports the breast."
- The average bra size in the UK is 36DD. Not so long ago it was 36C, but it's grown [13] because of "better education on bra fit, breast augmentation, and obesity."
- Nipples can get darker during pregnancy. Thanks to, again, hormones [14].
- Almost five percent of American women have fake boobs. Also, the number of implants [15] created since 1997 could fill an Olympic-size swimming pool. Weird visual, right?
- Men have nipples because all humans start out as a generic embryo. In the earliest stages of development, embryos follow a "female blueprint [16]."
- There's a name for the small bumps on your areola. They're called Montgomery glands [17], and they produce a "natural oil that cleans, lubricates, and protects the nipple during pregnancy and breastfeeding."
- Every nipple has 15 to 20 openings for breast milk to come out of. Whoa. These openings are called lobes [18], and each lobe has 20 to 40 lobules, which have milk ducts attached to them.
- The nipple and areola are heavily pigmented, which is why they are darker than [19] the rest of the breast.
- Sleeping facedown can affect the shape over time. Sad but true [20].
- Nothing makes your boobs happier than taking off your bra at the end of a long day. According to a scientific survey of thousands of boobs, this is 100 percent true.