We all know that breast augmentation is a guaranteed way to increase your breast size. With a high rate of satisfaction, a full suite of customizable options to get the look, feel and profile of your dreams, an augmentation and implants are the best way to achieve larger breasts. But is it the only way? We asked experts for nonsurgical ways to increase your breast size—plus, what if anything really works? Are nonsurgical options fact or fiction?
Featured Experts
- Elie Levine, MD is a board-certified plastic surgeon in New York
- Ryan Diederich, MD is a board-certified plastic surgeon in Glen Carbon, IL
- B. Aviva Preminger, MD is a board-certified plastic surgeon in New York
- Philippe A. Capraro, MD is a board-certified plastic surgeon in Denver, CO
The 24-Hour Boob Job
Outside of plastic surgery, the only guaranteed way to increase your breast size is only a temporary change. The “24-hour boob job” was coined and developed by New York plastic surgeon Norman M. Rowe, MD as a way for his patients to “test drive” a conventional breast augmentation, and involves injecting saline directly into the breast. This temporarily increases breast volume and can be customized to your desired level of enhancement.
“Once saline solution is injected into the breast tissue during temporary breast augmentation, it is absorbed by the body and eliminated through the urinary system,“ says Ryan Diederich, MD, Glen Carbon, IL plastic surgeon. “The saline solution is similar to the fluid found in the body and is considered safe for injection in small amounts.”
And your body processes this saline fairly quickly, resulting in a 24-hour breast enhancement. Due to cost and the short-lived results, this option is not a common practice, although it can be used for special occasions or to trial breast sizes prior to augmentation.
“If someone got it done at 9 a.m. and they had an event that evening and wanted to look augmented, then I think it would be great for that, but I wouldn’t expect it to last until the next morning,” adds New York plastic surgeon Elie Levine, MD.
Do topical creams or exercises increase the size of your bust?
“There are not any breast enhancement creams that can soak into the breast, increase the elasticity of the Cooper’s Ligaments and increase the amount of breast tissue,” explains Denver, CO plastic surgeon Philippe A. Capraro, MD. “SkinMedica does offer a product called the Firm & Tone Lotion ($165) that does help skin appear more supple and rich and can improve the appearance of the breasts but, again, it cannot enhance volume.”
As for exercise, “You can build chest muscles, but you can’t build breast tissue,” says Dr. Capraro. “There are certainly exercises that can increase the size of the pectoral muscles behind your breasts, but they won’t necessarily change your cup size.”
How does your breast size change naturally?
Ultimately, there are ways that your breast size can change naturally, just not in a way we can really control. “Weight gain or loss, puberty, menopause, during or post-pregnancy, hormone changes, and aging in general can all naturally alter the size of your breasts,” says Dr. Capraro.
That’s something plastic surgeons take into consideration when planning a breast augmentation—you don’t have to wait until you’re done having children, but pregnancy and breastfeeding may alter those results down the line.
“There are certainly things that can be done without waiting until you’ve finished having children,” says New York plastic surgeon B. Aviva Preminger, MD. “I often see women who have always wanted a breast reduction or a lift, and they’re ready to address it. They may or may not be done having kids.”
Similarly, experts advise you achieve a stable weight before undergoing a breast procedure, since gaining or losing weight may impact how your results look.
Outside of natural changes that occur with pregnancy or weight gain, the best way to increase your breast size without going under the knife is a good push-up bra. The right support will help the shape and profile of your breast, and push-up padding helps “push up” the breasts to achieve the illusion of a fuller bust.
