Do you know how to hide puffy nipples in men? Puffy nipple areola complex is one of the most common forms of gynecomastia. Along with excess breast growth, these men have glandular and/or fatty tissue that accumulates underneath or around the outside of the areola/nipple area. This causes the nipple to take on a domed appearance. With a majority of men having flat and nub-shaped nipples, puffy nipples can cause sufferers to feel deep shame about their bodies.
Puffy nipples can occur at any age but are more common in young adults. Men who experience this embarrassing condition often want to know how to hide their deformity from others. This becomes difficult when the puffiness can be viewed through clothing. While other men have normal-looking chests, puffy nipples become obvious, like a car with its bright headlights on at night.
If you find yourself lamenting your physical appearance on account of your puffy nipples, you have come to the right place. We are going to discuss various ways to hide gynecomastia and puffy nipples to stave off further embarrassment. And, as you may have hoped, you will also find ways to rid yourself of this troublesome condition for good.
What Causes Puffy Nipples to Form?
Puffy nipples in men are fairly common and male breast enlargement is to blame. It is estimated that 32% to 65% of all males suffer from gynecomastia at least once during their lifetimes. A good portion of these cases is accompanied by puffy nipple areola complex.
Gynecomastia – a term that originated from the Greek word for breast (mastos) – is caused by elevated levels of the female hormone estrogen in the body. The hormone spike occurs most frequently during puberty but can also have other causes, such as obesity, drug use, steroid abuse, medications, and underlying conditions.
For most teen boys and men who have puffy nipples, aesthetics is the primary concern. The condition is considered benign and traditionally is not accompanied by discomfort or pain. There are exceptions. Some men with puffy nipples can experience soreness, discomfort, and discharge.
Even if his nipples don’t hurt or are not leaking any fluid, the man can still suffer emotionally. Gynecomastia and puffy nipples can contribute to psychological discomfort, leading to anxiety, mood changes, and extreme self-consciousness. The condition can also lead to eating disorders, reduced libido, and depression.
The shame some men feel about nipple puffiness is perfectly described in the article Man to Man in Men’s Health Magazine by Shalom Auslander. “Bruce Lee, now there were some nice nipples. Bruce Lee’s nipples looked like Bruce Lee – tight, small, perfectly formed. His nipples looked as if a master artist at the peak of his craft had painted them on with the tip of a thin sable brush. My nipples looked like the work of a cross-eyed kid with a crayon who’d spent an hour trying to draw two circles, gave up, and made them into googly eyes. And there was something underneath them.”
Auslander is describing the lumps he felt underneath his areola complex, which were caused by the excess glandular tissue that is at the heart of the gynecomastia condition. This tissue can only be permanently removed by male breast reduction surgery (otherwise referred to as gynecomastia surgery).
But what if you are not ready for surgery? Is there not some way you can hide gyno and your puffy nipples, temporarily or permanently? Let’s take a look at some options.
How to Hide Gyno and Puffy Nipples
Pinch Your Nipples
If you have to take your shirt off to swim or find yourself becoming intimate with a new partner, sometimes pinching the areolar skin can cause the tissue to contract. This can momentarily hide the fact that your nipples are soft and pointy. You get the same effect when your body becomes cold. This could cause you to pray for colder days when your nipples will constrict enough not to be noticeable.
Cover Up
The most obvious method of hiding gynecomastia and puffy nipples is to refrain from wearing form-fitting shirts. Many men who have this condition wear baggy or multiple layers of clothing. While this strategy may work in the wintertime, it is not viable for the hotter summer months. You may also look out of sorts trying to hide gynecomastia at the beach by wearing a hoodie. Wearing baggy sweatshirts and multiple layers of clothes could cause you to suffer from hyperthermia.
And you may feel left out if your friends go swimming while you remain too afraid to remove your shirt. Most men rip their shirts off without a second thought during exercise or while swimming. But when you have puffy nipples, taking your shirt off is like ripping your pants down and hoping people won’t judge you.
Male Bra or Bandaging
The male bra is described in the book The Male Breast: What You Should Know About Gynecomastia by Sreekar Harinatha. “The male bra is a compression vest that is used following surgical correction for a few weeks so that the surgical swelling reduces faster. Many misguided boys wear it under their shirts to compress the breasts hoping that it would not show through their clothes and also hope that wearing it long enough would make the gland disappear.”
Others try bandaging or tape, where they roll bandages meant for sprains or sticky tape around their chests to hide their puffy nipples. The male bra and bandaging or trying to hide gynecomastia with tape can lead to skin damage and rashes due to tightness and skin irritation.
How to Hide Gynecomastia with Exercise
Body fat is a key component of gynecomastia. By losing weight, you may be able to give your chest manlier contours, as well as hide your puffy nipples. Strive to get at least 30 minutes of cardiovascular exercise at least 3 times per week. For maximum results, limit your calories. Download a calorie-counting app and challenge yourself to improve your results week after week and month after month.
For the absolute best results, pair your cardio with weight-training exercises. We will cover this more thoroughly in the next section.
How to Treat Puffy Nipples in Men
Pinching your nipples, covering up, and losing weight are ways you can hide or minimize the appearance of your nipples. It is not recommended to wear binding garments or bandages that can lead to separate issues. But instead of merely hiding the problem, there may be steps you can take to eradicate the problem temporarily or permanently.
Build Your Chest Muscles
Targeted chest exercises could theoretically reduce the puffiness of your nipples and give your chest a better shape. Engaging in exercises like chest dips, pushups, chest flyes, and incline bench presses can develop your chest enough to minimize the puffy effect.
For maximum effect, choose a handful of chest exercises to perform during each workout. Perform a few sets with a greater number of repetitions, such as 1 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps. A chest workout 3 times per week for 20 minutes each should do the trick. Make sure you rest at least once per week.
Balance your chest workouts with some type of full-body cardio like walking, running, or swimming to balance out your fitness routine. You should also increase your weight, intensity, sets, and reps as you grow stronger. Switch out exercises every few weeks so that your body does not grow accustomed to them.
While this routine can help with puffy nipples, it should be noted that enlarged male breast tissue is not related to the chest muscle. This means that, for some men, losing weight and working the chest area may not do anything to hide or mitigate the pointiness of their nipples. In some cases, building a more developed chest may make the puffy nipples more noticeable.
Change Your Diet
We have established that puffy nipples are caused by an increase in estrogen. Making dietary changes could help you boost your testosterone and simultaneously decrease fat. Foods that lead to higher levels of testosterone in the body include tuna, ginger, beans, garlic, shellfish, beef, oysters, blueberries, egg yolks, and cruciferous vegetables like broccoli.
Herbal Supplements
Some experts believe that taking certain herbal supplements can boost testosterone and treat puffy nipples. Examples include devil’s claw, milk thistle, passionflower, dandelion, and turmeric. You should ask your doctor before taking any herbal supplements as some can cause unpleasant side effects. Herbs can also have dangerous interactions with prescription or over-the-counter medications.
Gynecomastia Surgery
What do you do when covering up with clothing isn’t cutting it? How do you proceed when you have tried dieting and working out only to find that your chest and nipples look more pronounced? It is at that point that you should schedule a consultation with a qualified gynecomastia surgeon.
Gynecomastia surgery aims to remove the excess fatty and glandular tissue that leads to the appearance of female-like breasts. The procedure can also resize and reshape the areola complex to prevent your nipples from looking puffy, pointy, or extended to any degree.
Male breast reduction surgery, as the procedure is commonly known, is highly customizable. Some men have a majority of glandular tissue that leads to their male breast growth. Other men have mostly fatty tissue. Then there are the men with a combination of glandular and fatty tissue. A gynecomastia specialist uses specific techniques to address each of these problems.
Liposuction
Female breast tissue is mostly fat. The same can be said for male breasts. Liposuction is a cosmetic surgical technique that removes unwanted fat cells permanently. Cosmetic surgeons have the option of using traditional liposuction or higher-tech versions like VASER liposuction.
With traditional liposuction, a tumescent fluid is inserted into the treatment area through small incisions. This liquid contains a numbing agent that deadens the area for your comfort. Fat cells are also liquified by the mixture, which makes them easier to extract. The fluid and fat cells are suctioned out using a thin tube known as a cannula that is attached to a vacuum-like apparatus. Recovery time for traditional liposuction can take up to six weeks.
VASER liposuction uses sound amplification energy to liquefy fat cells instead of using a liquefying agent. With traditional lipo, the cannula is moved back and forth vigorously under the skin to release fat from the surrounding tissues. This can lead to bruising and bleeding post-surgery. VASER uses only sound energy, which is safer on surrounding tissues and leads to faster recovery. You can be back to your normal routine in a couple of weeks. VASER is also useful for etching the body’s musculature, which is attractive to men with puffy nipples who also happen to be bodybuilders.
Tissue Excision
Gynecomastia is primarily caused by excess glandular tissue. This tissue must be removed if you hope to achieve more masculine chest contours. There are 4 grades of gynecomastia ranging from mild to severe. At the more severe end of the spectrum, excess skin may be involved. Tissue excision can also be used to remove this extra tissue to masculinize the chest.
Check your insurance provider to see if gynecomastia surgery is covered. Some insurers will cover some or all of the costs.
Your health insurance provider is more likely to cover the fees involved with the surgery if your doctor sends a letter of medical necessity. This letter should state that having puffy nipples or an underlying condition that caused them is negatively affecting your health.
Stop Living with Puffy Nipples. Get Help Starting Today
To get help for your gynecomastia and puffy nipple problem, call the Gynecomastia Surgery Center of Los Angeles.
Doctor Babak Moeinolmolki is one of the premier gynecomastia doctors in Southern California. He can even help if you currently live out of town. Instead of randomly Googling “help for gynecomastia near me,” Schedule a consultation with Doctor Moeinolmolki by dialing (310)694-4486. This one phone call could be the most important call you make this year.
Read more:
Working Out After Gynecomastia Surgery for a More Attractive Chest
Dr.Babak Moeinolmolki
LA Cosmetic Surgeon Dr. Moein is board-certified by the American Board of General Surgery.