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Our society puts so much pressure on finding ways to look skinny and the fashion industry has supported an unhealthy view of our bodies by imposing a paradigm of "a perfect size". Women are followers of fashion and skinny jeans have found their way into what we believe to be trendy.
But, according to the Mayo Clinic, "meralgia paresthetica" is a health condition that is characterized by the tingling, numbness, and the burning pain that occurs in the outer part of your thigh. Many women wearing skinny jeans have reported these symptoms, mostly over weight women who insist on wearing a style of pants which is designed for very slim women.
The constant pressure put on the thighs by the skin-tight denim cuts off the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve, which is susceptible to compression. In more severe cases of meralgia paresthetica, women will also notice a patch of skin that is sensitive to the touch and can sometimes be painful.
Doctors suggest medications that are used to treat neurogenic pain, such as anti-depressant or anti-seizure medications to alleviate the symptoms and in those cases where pain is more severe surgical intervention have been suggested.
I think smart women who experience these symptoms as a result of wearing skinny jeans, should seriously consider a different style! Please, do not run to get drugs for those symptoms which will disappear by eliminating the cause!
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Add a Comment3 Comments
I found this post while searching for articles about this whole "skinny jean" craze. I'm the mom of a 7 year old who is fairly protected from the trends of modern society and still she wants skinny jeans. She's never been overweight, but also has never-even as a baby-been able to fit into most jeans, let alone skinny ones. Being active, she really needs a few pair of good jeans, and it really saddens me that it is so difficult to find a pair for my strong, healthy girl. So, at 7 she is already feeling pressure from the outside to be "skinny".
August 29, 2011 - 9:53amThis Comment
I am so laughing at the phrase "surgical intervention has been suggested." Is it to separate the woman from her too-tight jeans, lol?
I agree with the above posters, this is really interesting. I have a pair of "skinny jeans" but instead of being too tight around my thighs, the tightest part is around my waist. (Of course, the "waist" has fallen so far down these days that they are closer to the "hip huggers" of my own youth than anything).
I'm not sure why it's our jeans that really, truly seem to define for us our skinny days and our fat days. But it seems like people are confusing their skinny jeans with skin-tight jeans. Skinny jeans are the jeans you fit into when you're at your leanest and most fit. Skin-tight jeans, in my humble opinion, just don't look good regardless of your size and shape. (And the suffering involved just makes them worse!)
June 1, 2009 - 9:19amThis Comment
This is a really interesting share. I am a gal that has larger thighs and most jeans are tighter in the thigh area. I am not overweight but I certainly have to be selective when purchasing jeans. Funny enough, I tend to have a forever bruise on my outer thigh on one leg and could never figure out why it was there and I wonder if this may be a reason.
I think I will try and not wear jeans for several weeks and see if the bruise goes away. Thanks for the information.
May 30, 2009 - 9:16amThis Comment