The lack of nipples itself doesn't cause complications. But some of the conditions that cause athelia may lead to health problems. For example, severe Poland syndrome can affect the lungs, kidneys, and other organs. If you're missing a nipple, you won't be able to breastfeed your baby on that side.
Flat nipples1 don't protrude very far from the areola (the darker area surrounding them), even when stimulated. An inverted nipple dimples inwards at the centre. It may look like this all the time, or only when stimulated.
What Are Flat Nipples? Flat nipples are not raised. They appear to lay even with the areola and the surrounding skin of the breast. Flat nipples do not stick outward from the breast, but they don't turn inward either (those are called inverted nipples).
Smaller injuries can heal with proper care. However, if a nipple is completely damaged or removed from the body, it won't grow back. While rare, one or both nipples can be lost in an accident.
Born with inverted nipples
Your nipples formed when you were in the womb. If they pointed inward when you were born, it's because your nipple base stayed small in the womb or your milk ducts didn't fully develop. That pulls your nipple inward.
Breast development during puberty
2.1 Stage 1 This stage begins at about 8-12 years old, the nipples just begin to pop up, pink circle appears. This process takes quite a long time.
The earliest physical change of puberty for girls is usually breast development, which most often begins around 10 or 11 years. But it's perfectly normal for breast development to start anytime between the ages of 7 and 13.
It's common for nipples to become smaller, and the area around them, called the areola, almost vanishes. Lumps. Older breasts may be more prone to lumps or bumps.
The nipple contains smooth muscle fibers and is richly innervated with sensory and pain fibers. It has a verrucous surface and has sebaceous and apocrine sweat glands, but not hair. The areola surrounds the nipple and is also slightly pigmented, and becomes deeply pigmented during pregnancy and lactation.
"Genetics has the biggest role in both the size, appearance, and even color of the areola," Dr. White says. Areola size is something that you inherit from your parents, just like your breast and foot size, or your freckle pattern.
Although most people have protruding nipples, they can vary in appearance. Flat and inverted nipples are variations that people are born with or that can develop due to aging. During puberty, pregnancy, and menopause, hormonal fluctuations can affect nipple appearance and sensitivity.
Inverted nipples are pretty much what they sound like—the nipples appear to go inward into the areola skin rather than protrude outward. Typically a genetic trait, inverted nipples are thought to be caused by excess or unusually tight tissue just beneath the nipple, which pulls the nipple inward.
Athelia is a condition in which a person is born without one or both nipples. Although athelia is rare overall, it's more common in children who are born with conditions such as Poland syndrome and ectodermal dysplasia.
It's possible — and normal — to have hair almost anywhere on the body, so a few hairs on your nipples are nothing to worry about. Lots of girls have them. You have several options for removing nipple hair.
The nipple is the raised projection in the middle of the areola. About 15–20 ducts connect to the nipple. The nipple provides an exit for milk release during breastfeeding. The nipple also contains smooth muscles that can cause the nipple to become erect.
No, it's not true. Touching or massaging breasts does not make them grow. There's a lot of wrong information about breast development out there. Some of the things you may hear are outright cons — like special creams or pills that make breasts bigger.
Breast massage therapy can ease the breasts' sensitivity and provide better blood circulation to the breast. Gentle massage can also increase milk supply. Massage can help warm up and loosen the tissues around the breasts' milk ducts and help the milk flow.
Can you lactate when you're not pregnant? Yes, it's possible to lactate if you're not pregnant. Inducing lactation is a complex process that usually involves using hormone-mimicking drugs for several months to produce milk.
Women who have breast hyperplasia have some breast tissue that does not mature, so the breasts hardly develop at all. There are different causes but one specific condition that results in very little breast development is Poland's syndrome.
When the ovaries start to produce and release (secrete) estrogen, fat in the connective tissue starts to collect. This causes the breasts to enlarge. The duct system also starts to grow. Often these breast changes happen at the same that pubic hair and armpit hair appear.
Nipples can change in size
This happens frequently during pregnancy. One 2013 study of 56 pregnant women showed that their nipples grew in both length and width during the course of the study and their pregnancy. Their areola width also increased significantly.
Generally, the A cup is considered the smallest available but for some this is still too big and compensating with a smaller band size won't help. If you want something that's going to fit your form you'll have to go down a level to an AA or even AAA cup.
Can you breastfeed with flat or inverted nipples? The good news is that your nipples' outward appearance has no effect on your breasts' ability to produce milk. The bad news is that a flat or inverted shape might make it harder for your baby to get a good latch and remove the milk efficiently.
In some instances, you may be able to correct Grade 1 inverted nipples nonsurgically using the Phillips AVENT Niplette. The Niplette uses gentle suction to pull the nipple out into a small thimble-like device. After wearing the device daily for several weeks, your nipples will remain projected outward.