Puffy nipples are a common occurrence in both men and boys. The prominent puffy nipple result from protruding breast tissue directly underneath the nipple complex. This condition is called gynecomastia, also known as manboobs. It can be due to hormone imbalance during puberty, anabolic steroids, and medication, medical conditions, or even excess fat. The 4 ways to get rid of puffy nipples are diet, exercise, supplements, and lastly, male breast reduction surgery or gynecomastia surgery. Here is some great advice to get you started in the right direction.

Dietary Tips to Reduce Puffy Nipples

gynecomastia dirt to reduce puffy nipples

Excessive Dietary Fat and Changing Your Diet Can Improve The Appearance of Puffy Nipples.

The food that you consume plays a critical role in how you look and feel.  If you want to seriously change how you look and feel about your chest, a lifestyle change is the best way to be successful. If you know that your puffy nipple is due to excess body fat you need to look into your diet and first get rid of junk food and fast food because these are the key component that will result in puffy nipples. Cutting back on foods with high saturated fats is critical to a low-calorie or low-fat diet which will reduce body fat.

A food source that is low in estrogen levels will help to balance your hormone levels. These foods are vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli, kale, cauliflower are known as cruciferous vegetables and are low in estrogen.  Consume more foods that promote testosterone levels such as low-fat yogurt, egg yolks, kale, barriers, macadamia nuts, tuna, tomatoes, and olives.

A low-calorie diet that is low in sugar should be created and maintained for the desired results. Alcohol is high in calories and should be reduced if not eliminated. Beer has a direct relation to estrogen production and beer not only can cause a beer belly by increasing the body’s visceral fat but moobs as well.

So, let’s focus on a low-estrogen diet, a high testosterone diet, and a low-fat diet. This will reduce the overall body weight which includes extra fat but not excess breast tissue of the breast. By improving the hormone levels in the diet the estrogen and testosterone levels will be more balanced.

Dietary Supplements To Try To Reduce Puffiness of Nipples

Supplements are a good addition to the overall treatment plan to reduce nipples that protrude. Oral herbal supplements can be a more natural approach to reducing puffy nipple by increasing the testosterone level. For men with low testosterone levels taking supplements will be most effective.

Some of the most common dietary herbal supplements are:

Ginger –  Is also called Zingiber officinal, it has been used for medicine and spices in food for centuries. Ginger contains phenolic compounds that exhibit antioxidant, anti-tumor, and anti-inflammatory properties. The compounds responsible for this effect are gingerol, shogaol, and parado.  The role of ginger and its components have been the study on its effect on chronic disease for two decades. The results have shown strong health benefits.  Scientists have looked at the major component of ginger which is gingerols. This component of ginger has been shown to target pathways to chronic diseases and has the capacity to reverse or prevent chronic illness.  Ginger can be used safely as a medicinal food derivative in preventing chronic diseases.

Fenugreek – Has been shown to increase testosterone levels and boost sperm levels.  A Trusted Source study, 2017, evaluated 50 males who took the Fenugreek oral supplements for 12 weeks. Eighty-five percent of the males had an increased sperm count.  This resulted in increased libido, mood, and mental alertness.

Turmeric – This is similar to ginger with antioxidant properties which has significant amounts of curcumin.

Ashwagandha supplements – This may have a positive effect on testosterone levels. It has been evaluated more for its effect on male fertility than puffy nipple size.   Trusted Source study, in 2010, determined that ashwagandha increased the levels of testosterone in males.

Gynecomastia pills or supplements

Gynecomastia pills are marketed as male breast reduction busters.  These are sold over the internet and the most common are Gynexin, Gynectrol, and Ultimate Gynemax to name the most popular.  These gynecomastia supplements are fat-burning pills that reduce fat cell volume in the entire body. This includes the chest fat but is not only targeted to this area.  These supplements do not reduce the breast tissue which causes gynecomastia.  These are classified as herbal supplements or pills but not gynecomastia medication.

5 Top Chest Exercises for Men

15 Best Chest Workouts for Men - At-Home Chest and Pec Exercises

Chest muscles exercises build up the chest or pectoral muscles. This really does not get rid of gynecomastia but can make the overall chest wall look better. When this is combined with cardio exercises, which reduces chest fat, the overall outcome can be significant. You can invest in a simple barbell bench and incline bench cable for your home.

You want to work out the entire pectoral muscles especially the lower portion.  Therefore, different type of exercise is required. The following are effective chest exercises:

  • Barbell bench press
  • Pec deck Cable crossover
  • Chest press Inclined
  • dumbbell flies
  • Dips Pushups

 

It is wise to meet with a trainer initially especially if you are a beginner.  They will put together a good program and ensure good form.

Surgery for Reducing Puffy Nipples in Men

puffy nipples surgery before

For many men, the recommendations presented above will not achieve their goals. Many men eventually end up have surgery after realizing that non-surgical efforts are fruitless. T0 remove glandular breast tissue, requires male breast reduction surgery.

Gynecomastia surgery is very effective with a high patient satisfaction rate. In almost every case is curative.  The best doctor to perform this surgery is a board-certified plastic surgeon.

The type of surgical excision depends on the grade of gynecomastia.

  •  Gland excision with liposuction – This is the most common type of gynecomastia surgery. It is performed for grade 1 and 2 gynecomastia most commonly.  An incision is made at the bottom of the areola, a webster incision, and the surgical excision of the gland is removed and the chest fat is liposuctioned.
  • Double incision mastectomy with a free nipple graft – This surgical procedure is performed for grade 4 and sometimes grade 3 gynecomastia.  This type of surgery is used for excess skin which needs surgical tissue excision.  An incision is made at the bottom crease out toward the armpit and a second surgical incision is made above the nipple complex.  The skin and breast gland tissue are removed and the nipple is resized and placed as a skin graft in a masculine position.
  • Pull-Though technique – The is often used for pubertal gynecomastia or men who are grade 1 and in fairly good physical shape. This is a minimally invasive surgery. A 5 mm incision is made at the bottom of the areola and the gland is blindly directed free and pull out. This results in a very small incision.
  • Two-stage procedure – This type of surgery is used for men with minimal skin laxity with enlarged breasts tissue, Gland excision in liposuction is done in the first stage.  The second is performed 4 months later, under local anesthesia, and removes a donut-shaped section of skin around the areola.  The skin is tightened with a pure-string suture. This will improve skin laxity modestly.

 

What Kind of Shirts Hide Man Boobs?

Compression undershirts do not get rid of puffy nipples but they can flatten and smooth out the chest muscle area. Gynecomastia compression undershirts are effective and very affordable to hide excess breast tissue.  Many men use the technique and other non-surgical options and sometimes eventually gynecomastia surgery.  It is better to solve the problem than cover up it up.

The types of compression garments are vast to hide puffy nipples. There are core compression garments with various compression types, cotton undershirts, and spandex.  The internet has many options.

FAQ’s

Why do my nipples go puffy sometimes?

Puffy nipples are caused by gynecomastia breast tissue caused by a hormonal imbalance. The areola, which surrounds the nipple, has a muscle within it surrounding the entire areola. This muscle can be stimulated by cold, touching, or any type of stimulation. This causes the nipple to become firmer. When this happens the areola contracts and becomes smaller and the puffy nipple condition looks flatter. As a matter of fact, many men say that their chest looks fine when the nipple is stimulated which is the reason for doing this often in a social situation like frequent touching or getting into the water.

When the areola muscle is relaxed which is caused by warm temperatures and relaxation, the excess breast tissue protrudes and puffy nipples result. The nipple becomes more flaccid and soft.

Will my puffy nipples go away after puberty?

Yes, in 80% of boys puffy nipples will naturally go away. If the puffy chest appearance does not resolve in two years then it is not likely to. A discussion on this topic can be read in the gynecomastia.psstage.com forum here.

Dr. Delgado Bio

MIGUEL DELGADO, M.D.

Dr. Delgado, MD is a world-recognized plastic surgeon and specialist in the treatment of male breast enlargement, also called gynecomastia. He has developed new techniques and owns and operates gynecomastia.psstage.com, which has become the largest gynecomastia forum in the world. Dr. Delgado holds the two most coveted credentials; the certification by the American Board of Plastic Surgery and membership in the American Society of Plastic Surgery.