What is your opinion of the fascination with boobs?

Not all breasts are created equal, in terms of fascination with boobs. Too big and they are out of proportion to the rest of the chest. Too small and they make the woman look like a 12 year old (which, I understand, is a fetish. Not for me).

You can argue all you want that they are simply milk glands, but the fact is that man (most) women use their boobs as a way to attract, entice, keep, and enchant men. It isn’t men sexualizing women, rather it is women using their boobs as sexual tools to control men.

Perhaps it starts with their mothers breastfeeding instincts of comfort?
Then it becomes a need unexpressed and turns into a sexual thing.
So basically a nurturing feeling.

@Inspired_2write, if that was the thing, wouldn’t women who were breastfed be just as enamored?

I always think about this too! My BF prefers big butts :D which makes more sense to me in an instincts kind of way…. a big butt means healthy birthing hips for reproducing. Maybe big boobs means better feeding for baby?

I have pretty regular sized boobs but my whole life I have been shamed by women – not men! for not having gigantic titties. Not a single boyfriend or man has ever commented on the {lack of} size of my breasts. So I kind of agree with @elbanditoroso to a degree.

I think in America, it is a social thing to be obsessed with boobs. I also think it’s become socially acceptable to gawk at women thus making men want to bro out more over female body parts.

@Dutchess_III
Yeah the women probably become enamored of their own breasts as tools to attrack men and or breastfeed their children.

@Chyna, the “he” is an old HS friend and we are debating where this boob thing is nature or nurture on Facebook. He claims the very fact that they sexually stimulate him proves it’s a natural, instinctive attraction.
I say it’s the “taboo” aspect of boobs that makes it exciting, and that is man made.

@Inspired_2write I never became enamored of mine. They just did whatever with NO help or encouragement from me. It was SO annoying.
And I nursed for 4 years straight. That gave me an an entirely different perspective of boobs, and the sexual aspects just became down right silly to me.

I remember reading a fascinating article about breasts and natural selection. At one point in primate evolution they were a big turnoff, because the nursing mother wasn’t an interested sexual partner, but then it flipped around and breasts became a positive trait and natural selection took over. I’ll try looking for it later.

I read that human females are the only mammals who walk about in a state that suggests permanent lactation.

Fascination of boobs arose from natural instincts and cultural influence. That’s what I think happened in my case.

My girlfriend’s niece is breastfeeding her 8 month old, and she asked her why she didn’t mind us taking pictures of the baby and herself, while feeding (in busy public places).
Niece stated that she deemed her breasts no longer sexual (she didn’t state for now, or forever, or what).
Interesting (for me) is that I agreed with her on that; after the initial awkward first sight (me, seeing her breastfeeding her baby boy) I saw them for what they are.

To begin with, boobs are usually a mystery to boys entering puberty. At least before the arrival of the internet that was certainly the case. So we are condemned to hormome driven fantasies on just what’s under that blouse. It’s the same basic desire to “see her naked”. We poor pitiful men obsessed with rounding those bases.

Good on you @rebbel! It was when my baby would see the cover of Cosmos and go “Numma numma numma,” that I had to laugh!

@stanleybmanly Yep, you’re making a good case for the forbidden fruit argument. If we lived in a society where topless was the norm, I have a feeling there would be no obsession.

Exactly. They’d be about as arousing as ears or noses.

Boobs are just fascinating full stop. Make that two full stops ..

I don’t think they are! I think they are a pain in the ass (ha ha) and I want reduction surgery but the doc says insurance won’t pony up because they’ll consider it cosmetic and not necessary, and so what if my upper back hurts all time.

Q: What is your opinion of the fascination with boobs?

A: I will pay attention to them as long as they are in the White House.

Not all boobs. Just nice firm C-cuppers!

@BackinBlack breast size has nothing to do with the capacity to produce milk.

Simple.
They bounce.
Males are fascinated by anything that bounces, from little rubber balls, to basketballs, soccer balls, and bouncy (not wobbly) glutes.
If it bounces, they can’t look away.

Healthy breast is instinctively linked to healthy breeding because the person will possibly have enough breast milk to feed a baby. Long before bottles breast feeding was the only way to feed a baby. Especially if you live in the boonies with no milk nannies. It’s no different than people thinking even facial features means a healthy person. So they find that person to be attractive. Plus boobs are pretty, except on men.

But @Pandora….breast size is just display. It in no way indicates a woman’s actual ability to produce milk or the amount of milk they may produce. None.

Also, symetrical facial fearures = symetrical body (baring accident or disease) which = ability to survive child birth. It’s a valid indicator. Breast size doesn’t actually mean a single thing.

@Dutchess_lll Animal instinct is everything. Like bigger hips will mean a smoother birth and higher survivability of mother and child. Nothing of that is a guarantee. Healthy looking doesn’t guarantee a healthy baby. Big boobs won’t guarantee the ability to breast feed, Rounder hips doesn’t mean a baby won’t be breach or other problems won’t occur. I’m just saying that instinctively when it comes to women body parts, men are sexually attractive to women who look to be good breeding stock. Because we are all animals underneath. Even if a guy does not want to breed, his animal sexual drive derives from the animal instinct to reproduce. Think about it. If human beings did not have sexual desire there would be a very small will to reproduce.

Interesting read on the topic.

My experiences working around drunk women, is that they like breasts as much as many men. I am a butt guy. I’m much larger than most people, so I think I’m attracted to the bigger pelvis…

Boons are ok. They’ve never been a reason that I would like a girl, or not. If my girlfriend happens to have nice boobs, it’s a bonus…

Men are attracted to the waist-hip ratio more than anything else. Attraction to breasts is a fertility indicator that is an adaptation of walking upright. It’s a front-view visual cue that was not necessary when we were creatures that walked on all fours.

^^That last sentence is a view given in the book, The Naked Ape, by Desmond Morris. He also said that large breasts keep men from being distracted by a woman’s butt. Morris got a lot of flack from feminist groups.

He also said, if I recollect correctly, that women (unconsciously?) paint their lips red, as a sign of “ready to mate” (cause their vagina lips would be swollen and red around “mating” time).
Thanks for that image, Des…..

If they were all the same there might not be so much fascination with them. But, really, they are just so WEIRD!
So many guys are so fixated with them one might think that, if they fell down and broke their heads open, boobs would fall out. I’ve seen so many guys that, I swear, married boobs.
I like boobs, but am more of an ass man. But not just any ass! It’s gotta be JUST right…

Whatever it is, it is ancient to the point of being nearly unknowable.
The Venus of Willendorf figurine is over 25,000 years old.

That’s the crux of it, @Pandora. An animal instinct crosses all cultural boundaries. All cultures recognize and are attracted to beauty and symmetry when they see it—the waist / hip ration mentioned above. That is instinctive. It’s a visual reassurance that the person is healthy and fit. Breasts don’t indicate any thing at all. Not all cultures view them sexually. That is why I don’t agree that that is an “instinct.”

I have an old friend, who just cares about boobs. He once dated a girl with some sort of birth defects that made her legs very small, but from the waist up, she looked normal. She was a nice girl, but my friend was only in it for the boobs. He dumped her, on valentine’s day…

I swear, he just needed a girl with one boob, as long as it was big. He was even busted by my Mom starring at her breasts…

He has always been a fragile guy. He is epileptic, and probably wears the same size pants he wore when I first knew him, when we were 12. I wonder if his fickle health had any effect on him liking boobs?...

Breasts are a thing because they’ve been sexualized in our culture.

How are breasts not linked to sexuality?

Most women are attracted to a man with an athletic chest. Should we judge them, for their instincts?

@MrGrimm888 in the natural world they are no more sexual than legs. And legs can be MADE to be sexual, but that doesn’t mean they automatically are. As I’ve said, like 3 times, there are cultures around the world where women don’t cover their breasts.

An athletic chest tells us something about the ability of that man to hunt and to protect us. I like well muscled forearms my self. Again, it speaks to strength and health.
Boobs are not an indicator or health or anything else at all. Boobs have no function whatsoever, except for nursing the bebes.

^I disagree. Boobs are also where women calm people. Breasts are nurturing. Ever watch a female pick up a puppy, or baby? They instinctively pull it to their chest. It’s a calming place, and their very comforting.

Topless culture.

There are plenty of cultures, where men are practically bottomless as well. It doesn’t change the sexual nature of the penis.

Legs.

Legs can be VERY sexy.

To be completely honest, I think men (well hold on here, I won’t speak for all me) I find almost every part of the female body sexualy appealing.

Mouth. Lower back. Legs. Eyes. Nose. Hair. Hands. Shoulders. Neck. Stomach…

They’re sexual in the sense that overall fitness can be an indicator of reproductive health.

But girl children lay their heads on women’s breasts, too. They don’t develop a sexual obsession with them. Society does it to the men.

Boobs are not an indicator of reproductive health. They aren’t an indicator of anything at all.

You just don’t understand a man’s thinking. It’s far less complicated than you think.

@Dutchess_III Attraction to breasts are in no way culturally manufactured, it’s instinctive. Every boy knows this about the time they start growing hair in strange places.

Again, I think it’s because they’re forbidden fruits. There was a time when seeing a girl’s ankle would drive men just as wild because women weren’t allowed to show their ankles.

Fair enough. I agree with some of that. If it’s covered, it’s more appealing.

Men are just charged up.with testosterone though. It’s a powerful thing. If a girl was wearing something that just showed her elbows, I might be all about the bows. I’m a guy. I like bare skin, if a female will show it.

That’s my point. There are some things that are instinctively attractive, like beauty, proportion and good health. Then there are other things that society trains us to find attractive.

Is it coincidence that the (look of the) word boob(s) fits the form of breasts so nicely?

LOL!! Well lets go check it out!

Well. Women emphasize their boobs, with how they choose to dress sometimes.

Is that their fault, or a man’s fault?

While there can be other factors, breast development is affected by hormones.

Well-developed breasts could be (correctly or incorrectly) read as a fertility cue.

^Or an ability to provide lots of milk, to our offspring.

Actually, milk production isn’t dependent on breast size.

Some women do, because they know how the men will react. I never did. They reacted anyway. That has really nothing to do with nothing.
The size of the breasts has nothing to do with fertility or milk production. They are really useless bags of fat, unless the woman is nursing.

Women with higher breast-to-underbreast ratio (large breasts) and women with relatively low WHR (narrow waists) have higher fecundity as assessed by precise measurements of daily levels of 17-beta-oestradiol (E2) and progesterone. Furthermore, women who are characterized by both narrow waists and large breasts have 26% higher mean E2 and 37% higher mean mid-cycle E2 levels than women from three groups with other combinations of body-shape variables.

I don’t know if I agree with that. If it were important, why wouldn’t other mammals have permanently enlarged mammary glands too?

It’s a research paper, not an opinion. Not something you agree or disagree with.

I guess you can argue that the way their research was conducted was inaccurate. Or you could do your own research hoping to find conclusive data that supports your opposing view?

Perhaps it’s our country’s pristine attitude around nudity that drives the fixation with the “unseen”.

Many women develop larger breasts when breast feeding. Regardless of science, one would not be wrong to see bigger breasts as a result of the ability to feed a baby.

“Many” women do McGrimm? Are you sure only “some” women do? Do you think that some women don’t actually develop larger breasts when they’re lactating? (I gotta hear this!)

@Dutchess_III What is your opinion of the fascination with boobs?

It’s over the top.

Some of the world’s sexiest women do not have large breasts. They DO have a nice hip to waist ratio, though, and are otherwise symmetrical and beautiful, though.

Dutch. I used the word “many,” to avoid painting with a broader brush…

I would add that the way your q is worded, implies a vast generalization, on which I have not harped upon you about…

I guess I could have said “every female, that I know you had a child, had their breast increase in size. Sometimes following a decrease later…

Every female who lactates gets larger breasts. Even if they have 0 breast to begin with, they develop something, like cats and dogs. Then, when they quit nursing, their breasts go back to their pre-pregnancy size. It’s just biology.

^I’m trying to be polite, but it seems like your picking a fight here for some reason. Am I missing something?

For some reason you felt like you had to qualify that ”...some, but not all, women get larger breasts when they lactate.” No, dude. All women get larger breasts when they lactate. That’s not picking a fight. That is education.

A) some
B) all
C) most

Since we seem to be nit-picking,
I’m going with option C.

Dutch. I am wary of making general statements on Fluther. That’s why I chose to say “some.”

I understand why you did it. People get upset when folks made general, negative assumptions across the board, as in “All women are bad drivers,” or “All men think with their dicks.” I don’t blame them. But the physical changes a woman’s body goes through as the result of lactation happens across the board. It’s neither an assumption nor something negative. Therefore your caution, and @raum,‘s is illogical.

There are women whose breasts stay small while they are lactating.

I think it’s illogical to assume that all bodies operate the same way. It doesn’t have to do with being cautious or thinking it’s a negative thing.

We think with our balls…

@MrGrimm888 Do they get bigger when you lactate?

You’re joking, right @raum? If they are very small chested to begin with, the change may not even be something others really notice, but they are full of MILK in there so of course they get bigger! That’s like saying some water balloons don’t change size when you fill them with water. Does that make sense?

I’ve known moms who stayed the same bra size while they breastfed. And other moms who had to buy two sizes up. It’s kind of all over the place.

If you’re going with the water balloon model, then bigger breasts would have more milk. And we both know that’s not true.

One thing I find fascinating about boobs is that they can be shown in so many ways; top, sides, bottom bulges,... but no nipples.
And boobs can’t just have pasties. Too much boob being shown!
I have to wonder how much boob could be shown, sans nipples, before someone says “Hey! That’s too much boob!”

I ran a bikini contest, for about 4 years. Some girls were basically wearing two postage stamps, and a shoe string…..