I've never been a big fan of fajas. My family and fellow Latina friends have sworn by these things for years, but my experience with them has never been a good one. I don't know if it's because I occasionally struggle with gastritis, a stomach disease, but every time I put one on I feel bloated and sometimes even nauseous. Well that's because shapewear actually compresses your organs. You might look fabulous on the outside, but on the inside a whole lot of bad things are happening!
Read more ¿Qué más?: Wearing a faja while pregnant: Do or don't?
Shapewear has been hotter than ever lately, with brands like Spanx promising to give us smooth, hour-glass figures. But what no one tells us is how these fajas can actually hurt our health.
"It's like wearing a tourniquet," Dr. Manny Alvarez from Fox News said. "It cuts off blood flow and if you have a predisposition to blood clots. These could be a problem." If you can't see yourself parting from your faja–don't stress! Dr. Alvarez claims that using it on occasion is okay, but you should avoid wearing them on a regular basis. Here are six ways your shapewear is hurting you and make sure NOT to wear yours everyday!
Fajas can give you heartburn: If you struggle with acid reflux or occasional heart burn you might want to give that high-waisted panty a break. Corsets or shapewear that are meant to smooth the waist line and flatten the tummy area tend to compress organs like your stomach, intestines, and colon worsening these kinds of conditions. They can even cause extreme bloating and abdominal pain. Crazy right?
They can affect your bowels: Who would have thought a faja could affect your bowel movements? But apparently it does. And if you suffer from bowel disorders like irritable bowel syndrome it can makes things much MUCH worse.
They can bring you urinary problems: Believe it or not, a tight-fitted faja can even leave you with a UTI or bladder infection. "You've got all of this pressure on your bladder from the shapewear pressing down," chiropractor, Dr. Karen Erickson told the Huffington Post. "If you post-pone urinating, it can cause stress incontinence, where you leak, or it can exaggerate stress incontinence with people who already have it."
They can give your varicose veins: Tight-fitting clothing or shapewear affects blood circulation resulting in varicose veins or worse. Sitting in it can actually lead to blood clots, lymph congestion, swollen ankles, and a serious condition called Meralgia Paresthetica, that causes tingling, numbness and even burning pain on the outside of your thighs. Yikes!
They can cause bacterial infections: Tight shapewear can definitely put you at risk for bacterial infections in your vagina. Think about it: If you're wearing something that tight you're more likely to sweat and the material can easily trap moisture and other bacteria that can lead to infection.
It can mess up your spine: Many of us tend to believe that fajas and corsets can improve your posture, but it's quite the opposite. They can cause a curvature of the spine. Remember, these things are not therapeutically designed to give you back support.
Image via Amazon.com
