London, Sept 11 : Bras are letting down women eager to exercise and lead a sporting life, a new study has found.

According to the study by Dr Joanna Scurr, of the University of Portsmouth, on 70 women over 2 years, 45 percent to 60 percent of women experience pain in their breasts will working out, and that too regardless of what size they are.

Dr Scurr says that this is because bras are not designed to handle the way women exercise.

She found that not only do breasts bounce more than previously thought during a workout, but that they also move from side to side and in and out - something that ordinary bras are not designed to cope with.

"There really are women who want to do exercise but who don't have the bras to cope. I know of a 16-year-old chosen to play basketball for the county who was told to give it up because she couldn't find a bra that made playing possible," The Telegraph quoted Dr Scurr, as saying.

Dr Scurr is now working with bra manufacturers to come up with a design for bras that will help women exercise sans pain.

"This information could be used to inform bra design, for clinical support, fundamental breast health research and to broaden understanding in this area."

Dr Scurr is to present her findings at the British Association of Sport and Exercise Science's annual conference in Bath on Friday.(With Inputs from ANI)