Your bra might be sabotaging your health — this style is the ‘worst offender’

They lift, they separate … and they just might sabotage your health.

Surveys show that 8 in 10 American women wear a bra most days, and the majority agree it’s a real pain in the chest. But could your style of over-the-shoulder boulder holder be doing more harm than good?

“This is such an important question — and one we’ve been trained not to consider,” Bree McKeen, founder and CEO of Evelyn & Bobbie, told The Post. 

“The truth is, most of us were never taught how to properly assess whether a bra is actually serving our bodies, we just put up with the discomfort,” she said. “But bras can have a significant impact on our health — both physically and emotionally.”

McKeen revealed five surprising ways your bra might be hurting your wellbeing and named the worst offender still lurking on store shelves today.

#1 Musculoskeletal mayhem

The average woman carries between half a pound and 1½ pounds per breast — but for those with D-cups or larger, each side can weigh three pounds or more.

“If your bra doesn’t distribute weight effectively, your shoulders and neck end up doing all the work,” McKeen said.

That uneven load can lead to a laundry list of issues, including poor posture, neck and back pain, tension headaches and even long-term spinal misalignment.

“It’s especially true for women with fuller busts, who carry meaningful weight on their chest every day,” McKeen said.

She knows firsthand. As a curvy woman with a 34G cup, she struggled for years with aching shoulders, tension headaches and posture issues from wearing underwire bras before founding Evelyn & Bobbie.

#2 Strap attack

You wouldn’t carry a bag of sugar around your neck with a shoestring, right?

“That’s what a lot of women are essentially doing every day,” McKeen said. “Ouch!”

The straps of a poorly designed bra, she explained, can dig into the nerves that run from your neck and shoulders down to your arms.

“Over time, that can cause tingling, numbness or shooting pain — something many women live with daily and never trace back to their bra,” McKeen said.

#3 Lymph lock

Traditional underwire bras — especially tight or ill-fitting ones — can squeeze the tissue around your breasts and underarms, McKeen said.

That squeeze can restrict blood flow and interfere with the lymphatic system, which plays a key role in fighting infections and balancing fluids in your body.

“There is virtually no research on the impact of restricting lymph around the breast, so I’m a little cautious when it comes to this topic,” McKeen said. “But what we do know is that lymphatic flow is critical for our tissues to detox properly.”

After surgery, doctors often recommend wire-free bras to reduce swelling and speed healing.

“Why not just wear that every day?” McKeen asked. “I personally want a bra that doesn’t restrict my natural physiology.”

#4 Irritants and invaders

Common allergens like latex, nickel and spandex often sneak into bras and can irritate your skin, causing symptoms like itchiness, redness, swelling and rashes, McKeen said.

She also warned that some bras contain toxic materials that can transfer directly onto your skin.

One major culprit: Bisphenol A, a common chemical found in some fabrics that has been linked to health concerns such as asthma, heart disease, obesity and hormone disruption.

In 2022, the Center for Environmental Health found that sports bras from top brands exposed wearers to up to 22 times the “safe” BPA level.

“I’ll take BPA-free bras, please,” McKeen said. “I don’t drink out of cheap plastic water bottles, and I don’t put that on my skin either.”

#5 The emotional load

This one’s often ignored — but it hits deep.

“Wearing something that hurts or digs or reminds you all day long that your body doesn’t fit the mold … and that takes a toll,” McKeen said. “The discomfort can be distracting, exhausting, even demoralizing.”

Studies back it up: women who suffer physical bra pain often report more anxiety and lower self-esteem.

“Here’s the deeper truth: What you wear against your body every day matters,” McKeen said. “Not just for your physical health — but for your confidence, your energy, your ability to show up fully in your life.”

What’s the worst bra for your health?

“Unfortunately, it’s the kind that’s been marketed to us as the ‘gold standard:’ the traditional underwire push-up bra,” McKeen said. 

That style, she explained, unnaturally forces breast tissue upward and inward using a flat piece of steel — all while putting pressure on vital lymphatic drainage pathways.

“The underwire also digs into delicate tissue and is often placed directly over the inframammary fold, where many women develop cysts or pain,” McKeen said.

“Many times, I’ve seen actual scars on full-busted women from the constant pressure and chafing,” she noted.

Plus, McKeen said, this design leaves the straps and band doing all the heavy lifting, leading to shoulder grooves, back pain and constant adjusting all day long.

“At Evelyn & Bobbie, our mission is bigger than bras,” McKeen said, pointing to their patented technology that delivers support without underwires.

“It’s about restoring dignity to the daily experience of being a woman. It’s about listening to your body, honoring its needs, and refusing to settle.”