For years women have spent money and energy trying out products which claim to increase breast size. College-aged women are the target for new, herbal, “all-natural” alternatives.

Herbal Bust Plus, Grobust and Bloussant are a few of the popular names of herbal breast enhancers, which can range in price from $88 for a 60-day supply up to around $375 for nine months or more.

One product in particular, called Vanity, claims to be “the only herbal breast enhancer on the market that has been proven to work.” Most of the products like Vanity even offer guaranteed results and a 100 percent money-back guarantee.

Because these products claim to be all-natural, they do not require approval from the Food and Drug Administration, which makes specific statements in articles on its Web site regarding these products.

The site says, “All is wasted. There is no device or system of exercise that will increase the size of the breasts. At best devices promoted as breast developers merely strengthen and develop the muscles that support the breast, and exercising these muscles will not appreciably increase breast size.”

Dr. Roger Miller, the assistant director of Clinical Services at the Student Health Center at Ohio State concurred with the articles.

“I am really unclear from most of the advertising exactly what is in most of these pills. … Herbal supplements are regulated like food by the federal government, not like medicines. Therefore, the manufacturers do not have to prove the effectiveness of their products, as long as they avoid making claims that the products actually cure a disease.

“Most of these herbal substances work with a plant chemical called phytoestrogen but in such a small amount that it probably has no effect,” Miller said.

The FDA’s Web site also stated, “Creams and lotions advertised as breast developers don’t work either. Some contain the hormone estrogen. Estrogen can increase breast size, but in order to be sold without a prescription, these products must contain such a small amount of the hormone that its effect is insignificant.”

The FDA site said, “Estrogen is used in birth control pills and to treat symptoms of menopause. FDA approval for estrogen does not include use for breast development.”

One OSU student, who calls herself Sparkle, works as an exotic dancer and admits to previously trying the herbal breast enhancers for a few months to increase her breast size and avoid getting implants.

“In the exotic dancing business, it is no secret that the girls with the biggest (breasts) make the most money. I was about a B cup and when I heard an advertisement on the radio that said trying the herbal pills would save me from having to have surgery, so I wanted to try it,” Sparkle said.

She said that the experiment was a waste of money.

“I paid over $300 in about a seven-month period of time. I just stopped using it after a while because it didn’t seem like it really worked. I mean, I noticed that my chest was somewhat firmer, and maybe there was a half-cup size increase or so, but nothing like having implants or anything,” she said. “I really wouldn’t advise anybody in wasting their money like I did, but I guess it was worth a try.”