I understand the actual knob on a breast for a feeding purpose . Wouldn’t just that be enough ? Why the areola around it especially with a different shade of colour to the rest of the breast ?
In: Biology
It is believed that the areola, and also that the areola darkens during pregnancy, allows a more easily contrasting area for the baby to identify and suckle.
My wife has explained this to me. A newborn’s vision is incredibly limited so areolas exist to help them find the nipple to nurse. Dark skin on lighter skin is easier for them to see. This is also why some areolas will darken during pregnancy.
It’s a bullseye for babies to see their target. Babies have very poor eyesight the first couple months, so it would allow them to better locate where their food is.
They also excrete a scent that helps the newborn find the breast. It’s similar to the scent of amniotic fluid.
Edited to add that the substance excreted also helps keep the nipple lubricated to help avoid painful cracking and sores while breastfeeding is established.
When infants feed, the nipple isn’t the only party that goes in their mouth. Much of the areola also is part of the suckling process. Wild, I know.
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“Areolae: The areola is the circular darker-colored area of skin surrounding your nipple. Areolae have glands called Montgomery’s glands that secrete a lubricating oil. This oil protects your nipple and skin from chafing during breastfeeding.”
* They darken during pregnancy to help a newborn find the nipple.
* They secrete a liquid via the Montgomery Glands to keep the nipples from chafing/cracking during the breastfeeding period
* Stimulation of the areola keeps the nipple erect for easier feeding/latching
There is a biological function to them, the ‘real’ answer is that it just didn’t matter if they were a different color. Bodies do all kinds of weird stuff just because ‘it doesn’t matter’ from an evolutionary perspective.
It may have even been an asset in evolution as a darker areola made a ‘boob’ look more ‘booby’.
A lot of plausible answers here, but it’s worth considering that some features just appear stochastically without specifically being selected for or adaptively advantageous. We might have them because the advantages people name provide an adaptive advantage, but so far none of those answers are perfect because it’s not clear that the absence of those features provides a reduction in ability to propagate your genes. Many, and some argue, most, features appear as a result of genetic drift that isn’t actively harmful. The areola could be such a feature.
Related: could be a sex selection advantage. We’re the only mammals with permanently engorged breasts, likely because of sex selection. Areolas could be like that.
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