All of this is info I jut gleaned from the net. I cant be sure of the authenticity of the claims

Women traditionally wore skirts, not pants and usually did not wear underwear (typically if they were poor). As time wore on, it was a luxury and the rich would have quite elaborate undergarments. If you could afford it, pants were worn underneath the skirt in cold weather, or if going horse riding.

Even up until the 1950's, women in countries with regional traditional dress such as areas of Germany still did not even wear any, and some isolated villages it is noted that they still dont.

I found some info also attributed to a 'scientist' in the 1800's who wrote that though unerwear was becoming a popular idea, a 'trend' (just as in the fashion trends of today) women should NOT wear any underwear so as to allow moisture to evaporate in the area, and to prevent infections. He did say however that where the weather brought insects, undergarments were a good idea.

I found less info on men, though it appears the underwear idea orginally came from ancient times in warm climates where clothing was merely a loin cloth, and the women sometimes also wore a band around their top half. This was for protection and also to retain modesty. It would seem underwear evolved from the orginal idea that we need to cover up our nakedness, to having more practical uses.

Now you would think one specific thing for women that would indicate the necessity for undergarments would be menstruation, right? Well traditionally, women did not wear anything under their skirts and would simply bleed into their clothes. There is apparently one village known in India where this is still common today, though the men dont pay any attention because it is considered normal practice. Also noted was a remote tribe in the Amazon where there is no word for woman in their language, but instead women are referred to as 'person with a red streak down the leg'.

So I figure underwear evolved from a necessity in certain climates, to becoming more of a modesty issue. And apparently women did not menstruate in the past as much as they do these days (for many reasons- chilbirth, diet, etc) but now in our modern society it appears there is a necessity for most women to wear underwear because of this particular factor. It has also just been commonly accepted as an essential piece of clothing and no-one questions it. If you dont wear skirts, or menstruate then you dont really have a scientific reason to wear any, down the bottom half anyway.

That said, I also believe bras can help reduce sagging (see tribes around the world that go topless), and mens underpants can provide support when playing sports.

Pants and underwear? If you're wearing thick fabric pants that are rough, underwear would come in handy to protect your delicate areas. Still, I hate wedgies.

Interesting topic! :D

I find that although bras can be a nuisance, uncomfortable (and expensive!) that they are pretty much a necessary evil of the modern world if you aren't completely perky or over a size B cup (unless you're living somewhere no one thinks twice about not wearing a bra!). It definitely reduces the amount of wanted/unwanted male/female/general attention if you do wear one. Personally I will wear a super-supportive one at work (office envionment) for modesty's sake and (because I would probably be told I needed to wear one if I didn't!) and then take it off as soon as I remember when I get home, for comfort and to let the lymph glands around my breasts and armpits 'breathe'. I read somewhere once that if you do wear a bra try not to wear it for more than 8-12 hours a day, which most people probably would do anyway.

Re. undies - yep, definitely wear them!! Mainly for cleanliness as I like to wear my pants more than one day in a row and also because the pants have zips! :D I'm not much of a skirt wearer otherwise would probably go without, otherwise like my good old cotton ones.

If you follow natural family planning and cleanliness is your main concern then there are some interesting books out there (can't remember the name of the one I read sorry) that detail the things you should expect during your cycle so that you can anticipate when undies might be a good idea - i.e. when you are ovulating and just prior things can get a wee bit more messy than normal if you know what I mean. Otherwise there are lots of days when you should be fine!

Go the natural girls - if you can and like it good on you, one day I might ditch zippy pants and join you!! :D

Michelle

I love this topic.....it's made me larf, and larf, and larf.  You are all funny.

Personally I like wearing bras and undies......some are REALLY pretty.  They also make me feel sexy.........but I MUST admit, my hubby thinks I'm pretty sexy without wearing them!!! LOL  He says why have any underwear when all he wants to do is take them off!!!  Ok, I'll stop there.  More than most of you probably are wanting to know.

What I wanted to add to this topic is that my hubby saw on one of those 'news' programs which talked about cellulite.....and one of the ways to reduce cellulite is to NOT wear undies. 

Now I don't know the scientific reasoning behind it (or whether it was a ploy by my hubby for me NOT to wear undies ), but there's a reason for me not to wear undies.  Well, I'll just have to start being fancy-free at times.

Luv

Rita

i haven't been wearing any for at least a week straight.  It's interesting because if I were dating someone right now i'd probably wear them more often because i think they are sexy and fun...  I am just lazy and this way of living seems more comfy, covenient, and practical.  It just makes sense.  it's weird because I am the kind of person who has undies matching with every bra...  call me a feminist, but now I am thinking it's just another one of those evil female foot binding status symbol thingies our society creates. 

::burns undies::

noooo but they're so cuuute!!  ; )

Okay you guys are going to think I am a twit.

When I was about 25ish I was going through the no undies stage (never not worn a bra boobs too big) anyway one particular day i was wear nickers (as my two year old calls them) they where loose nickers the comfy ones (most prob classed as granny ones) I went to the toilet forgot I had them on and peed all over them. We were out at Pete's siters place so I was so imbarressed. At least I had a bag or two that I could hide them in.

Now I am going to go and hide behind the couch Nah it was an accident oh well.

so lession learnt for me make sure you havnt accidently put them on hehehehehe.

Rock on Dmtree! I am down to 3 squares a toilet paper at a time, my Mum doesn't know how I manage it but if I accidentally grab more it is way more uncomfortable... I'd like to get down to none, but maybe that's a bit easier for guys, lol! 

Your kidding right? i went to one of those squatters overseas and there was poop and peepee everywhere all over and toilet paper rolls all over the walll and toilet area. I almost vomited. So i had to wait the whole bus drive to the next town where they had real toilets and were clean.