Hi-tech bra to revolutionise women's exercise?

Scientists in Australia claim to have invented a high-tech brassiere that will help manufacturers to improve sports bra designs in future.

A space-age fabric, which has been developed at the University of Wollongong, contains sensors that can monitor breast movement during exercise. The researchers have constructed a bra out of the material in a bid to discover more about how 'larger-sized' women are affected.

The Journal of Biomechanics, cited by the BBC, revealed that in testing two women wearing 36D and 38DD-size bras, movement of 2.7 inches was recorded. According to the scientists, such movement can make exercise simply too painful for some women to take part in.

Responding to the development, Dr Joanna Scurr of Portsmouth University told the broadcaster that any research on such matters would be "very welcome".

"My research suggests that, when it comes to sports bras, the traditional 'encapsulated' design, where each breast is held separately in a cup which encloses it completely, works better than some of the more modern designs which work by pressing the breasts into the chest to stop movement," she said.

Tightsplease sells a range of shock-absorbent sports bras including the Pump, the Classic and the D+ Max.