# surprising fact about women and sex **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 13, 2004, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938 "2004-10-13T02:10:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Red\_Stilettos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/fbc32d/32.png) [@Red\_Stilettos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Stilettos)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/1 "2004-10-13T02:10:07Z")
I just learned that a woman’s breasts increase in size by a whopping 25% when she’s turned on! :eek: This little gem came from the infamous Masters and Johnson studies of sexuality, so I believe it. My question is: why doesn’t anyone notice this? Everyone I’ve told this to has reacted like this: :eek: , followed by 😃 then 🆒. I’m just shocked that men don’t notice this. Maybe they’re just too distracted by the things to come…no pun intended. Just MPSIM… ---
**Author:** ![Keapon\_Laffin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e274bd/32.png) [@Keapon\_Laffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keapon_Laffin)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/2 "2004-10-13T02:13:35Z")
The breast or the nipples? :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Stilettos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/fbc32d/32.png) [@Red\_Stilettos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Stilettos)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/3 "2004-10-13T02:16:39Z")
according to my readings, the breast. I would guess that in most women, that would be equal to increasing a cup size! :eek: Seriously, how is it that no one notices this??? They also talk about the nipples getting hard and more prominent, but a percent increase was not given for them. ---
**Author:** ![PetW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d2c977/32.png) [@PetW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PetW)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/4 "2004-10-13T02:51:36Z")
Maybe nobody notices it because there aren’t any cites for this “fact.” ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Stilettos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/fbc32d/32.png) [@Red\_Stilettos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Stilettos)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/5 "2004-10-13T02:57:53Z")
My, my, aren’t we snippy tonight? I got it from “Biology of Women” by Ethel Sloane and she got it from _Human Sexual Response_ by Masters and Johnson, published 1966. Sorry, no internet cite. ---
**Author:** ![Triskadecamus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b19c9b/32.png) [@Triskadecamus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Triskadecamus)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/6 "2004-10-13T03:55:21Z")
Not to pop your fantasy bubble, but the cube root of 1.25 is 1.0772, or slightly under an eight percent increase in any visible linear measurment of breast size. Math is no fun. Tris ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/7 "2004-10-13T03:57:26Z")
It’s pretty well-known, actually. It doesn’t happen until the woman is _extremely_ aroused (pretty much about to come), so if you’ve never noticed it… ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/8 "2004-10-13T04:53:05Z")
> [@ultrafilter](#): > > It’s pretty well-known, actually. It doesn’t happen until the woman is _extremely_ aroused (pretty much about to come), so if you’ve never noticed it… Sorry… I just couldn’t keep the calipers steady. ---
**Author:** ![Incubus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c68b51/32.png) [@Incubus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Incubus)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/9 "2004-10-13T04:56:44Z")
The Learning Channel (or was it the Discovery channel) had a documentary about human sexuality, and one of the things they showed was a woman’s breast swelling up from arousal :eek: …you know, to be honest, I didn’t really observe that much change in volume, I guess I was too busy dropping my jaw through the floor looking at my TV screen entirely filled up with booby :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Keapon\_Laffin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e274bd/32.png) [@Keapon\_Laffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keapon_Laffin)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/10 "2004-10-13T05:06:54Z")
> [@Incubus](#): > > The Learning Channel (or was it the Discovery channel) had a documentary about human sexuality, and one of the things they showed was a woman’s breast swelling up from arousal :eek: > > …you know, to be honest, I didn’t really observe that much change in volume, I guess I was too busy dropping my jaw through the floor looking at my TV screen entirely filled up with booby :eek: :eek: I don’t suppose you managed to tape/tivo it? For umm… educational purposes… of course… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Incubus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c68b51/32.png) [@Incubus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Incubus)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/11 "2004-10-13T05:39:40Z")
> [@Keapon Laffin](#): > > :eek: > I don’t suppose you managed to tape/tivo it? > > For umm… educational purposes… of course… > 😃 ROFL if I had taped it, that tape would have worn to dust long ago! 😛 You can get it on DVD, probably at your local public library. They even have these ‘viewing booths’ you can watch media in private…now I know what all those raincoat men are doing in there! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/12 "2004-10-13T05:50:41Z")
> [@Incubus](#): > > You can get it on DVD, probably at your local public library. They even have these ‘viewing booths’ you can watch media in private… Yeah I know what you’re talking about dude, but, uh… that’s not the library you’ve been going to. ---
**Author:** ![Keapon\_Laffin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e274bd/32.png) [@Keapon\_Laffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keapon_Laffin)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/13 "2004-10-13T06:09:44Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > Yeah I know what you’re talking about dude, but, uh… that’s not the library you’ve been going to. 😛 Yeah, **Incubus** , weren’t you suspicious when they charged you for entry? ---
**Author:** ![Incubus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c68b51/32.png) [@Incubus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Incubus)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/14 "2004-10-13T06:20:31Z")
Yeah, yeah, laugh it up :o but this IS the library I’m talking about. The DVD is educational, just like Nova episodes. The TV’s they have at the libraries have headphones and partitions so you can watch stuff wtihout being disturbed by other people. ---
**Author:** ![AngelicGemma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/439d5e/32.png) [@AngelicGemma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngelicGemma)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/15 "2004-10-13T09:17:56Z")
:dubious: I’m going to have to ask my boyfriend about this. Because I’ve never noticed it… ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/16 "2004-10-13T09:19:13Z")
> [@AngelicGemma](#): > > :dubious: > > I’m going to have to ask my boyfriend about this. Because I’ve never noticed it… Don’t do it unless you have some free time, because he’ll need you to jog his memory and he’ll want to examine the phenomenon firsthand ASAP. ---
**Author:** ![bienville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@bienville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bienville)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 9:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/17 "2004-10-13T09:34:19Z")
> [@Triskadecamus](#): > > Not to pop your fantasy bubble, but the cube root of 1.25 is 1.0772, or slightly under an eight percent increase in any visible linear measurment of breast size. I don’t know so very much about the maths. Can someone explain what this means? Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/18 "2004-10-13T10:54:09Z")
> [@bienville](#): > > I don’t know so very much about the maths. Can someone explain what this means? Thanks! The only part I understood was 80085. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mycroft\_Holmes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a5b964/32.png) [@Mycroft\_Holmes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mycroft_Holmes)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 11:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/19 "2004-10-13T11:22:27Z")
> [@bienville](#): > > I don’t know so very much about the maths. Can someone explain what this means? Thanks! Well, since the boob is a three dimensional object (and thank goodness for that :D), an increase of 25% in volume (thus size) corresponds to only an eight percent increase in width for example. This means if the width of one of your boobies was 20cm before arousal, they would expand to a width of 21.6 cm. That’s hardly something that would be extremely noticeable. In inches: If they’re 7 inches wide before arousal, they would expand to 7.56 inches wide. A little more than half an inch shouldn’t be that noticeable. ---
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2004, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938/20 "2004-10-13T11:32:11Z")
There are entire [websites dedicated to studying this phenomenon as it pertains to Ms. Britney Spears](http://www.anomalies-unlimited.com/Britney.html).\* \*And now we can speculate on what is stimulating her in certain photos. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/surprising-fact-about-women-and-sex/268938.md?page=2)