Breast swelling and nipple pain

Many people feel both breast swelling and breast pain, which are some physical manifestations. Many people think that breast pain must be caused by diseases such as mastitis or breast cysts. This is only a pathological factor. Most of the time, it is physiological breast pain caused by reasons such as puberty before and after menstruation, pregnancy, and childbirth.

There are 6 reasons for physiological bloating:

1. Breast pain during adolescence: The earliest breast pain in girls usually occurs between the ages of 9 and 13. At this time, the girl's breasts begin to develop. First, the nipple swells, and then a dome-shaped lump about the size of a pea or a bean appears in the breast tissue under the nipple, which is slightly swollen and painful. After menarche, it will disappear on its own as the breasts mature.

2. Premenstrual breast pain: More than half of women experience breast fullness, hardness, and tenderness before menstruation. In severe cases, the breasts may become swollen and painful even with slight vibration or collision, and the original granular or nodular feeling becomes more obvious. This is caused by increased estrogen levels in the body before menstruation, breast hyperplasia, and edema of the breast interstitial tissue. The above changes may disappear after menstruation.

3. Breast tenderness during pregnancy: Some women experience breast tenderness around 40 days after pregnancy due to the placenta and villi secreting large amounts of estrogen, progesterone and prolactin, which causes breast hyperplasia and breast enlargement. In severe cases, the pain may last throughout the pregnancy and no treatment is required.

4. Postpartum breast pain: Breast fullness, hardness and pain may often occur 3-7 days after delivery. This is mainly caused by breast lymph retention, venous congestion, interstitial edema and obstruction of mammary ducts. Prevention and treatment methods: Mothers should breastfeed as early as possible. If there is a lump, you can apply hot compress and massage the lump before breastfeeding; you can also use a breast pump to draw out milk to promote patency of the mammary ducts.

5. Breast pain after artificial abortion: After artificial abortion, some women complain of breast pain and can feel a lump. This is because the pregnancy is suddenly interrupted, and the hormone levels in the body drop sharply, causing the newly developed mammary glands to suddenly stop growing, resulting in breast lumps and breast pain.

6. Breast pain after sexual intercourse: This is related to the physiological changes in the breasts during sexual intercourse. People with low libido or disharmonious sex life cannot achieve sexual satisfaction, so breast congestion and swelling are not easy to subside, or they subside incompletely. Continuous congestion will cause breast pain. Therefore, women should attach importance to a good sex life, and those who have no orgasm or low sexual desire should seek medical attention.

Diagnosis

1. Breast lump. It usually appears on one side of the breast, has a hard texture, grows quickly, and is movable. If it invades the pectoral muscles or chest wall, it will have poor mobility or be fixed.

2. Skin changes. Breast cancer invading the skin can cause specific changes in the skin, which can be best described by using orange peel as an analogy. There is also a special type of breast cancer, which is mainly manifested by inflammatory changes in the breast skin. The skin color changes from light red to dark red, accompanied by skin edema and thickening, and increased surface temperature, which can spread from local areas to the entire breast.

3. Nipple changes. Tumor invasion of the nipple can cause nipple inversion. If the lump is large, it will cause one breast to swell, making it impossible for the nipples on both sides to remain at the same level.

4. Nipple discharge . If no obvious lump is found, but bloody or liquid discharge from the nipple occurs, you should seek medical attention promptly to be alert to the occurrence of breast cancer.

5. Enlarged superficial lymph nodes. If you find enlarged lymph nodes in the armpits or above the clavicle, especially those that are hard and less mobile (or mobile), you should suspect the possibility of breast cancer. Women who are obese, have early menarche, late menopause, or have a family history of the disease are at high risk of breast cancer. If they experience the above symptoms, they should pay more attention.

Treatment and care

Pathological breast pain requires active treatment of the underlying disease.

In addition, you can also use the following methods to relieve bloating and pain symptoms:

1. Change your eating habits: eat a low-fat, high-fiber diet, and eat more cereals (whole wheat), vegetables, and beans.

2. Massage your breasts frequently: Gently massaging the breasts can return excess body fluids to the lymphatic system. When massaging, first apply soapy liquid to the breast, and rotate your fingers along the surface of the breast in a circle about the size of a coin. Then use your hands to press the breasts in and bounce them up, which is extremely helpful in preventing breast discomfort.

3. Wear a firm bra: In addition to preventing breast sagging, the more important function of a bra is to prevent further compression of the already compressed breast nerves and eliminate discomfort. Careful sisters will find that those jogging athletes wear stable bras for this health reason.

4. Avoid diuretics: Diuretics do help discharge fluid from the body and can also reduce breast swelling. But this immediate relief comes at a cost. Excessive use of diuretics can lead to potassium loss, disrupt electrolyte balance, and affect glucose formation.

5. Do not eat too salty food: High-salt food can easily cause breast enlargement. This type of food should be avoided especially 7 to 10 days before menstruation.