One of the main problem areas for men has always been the man-boob; most men can’t spend three hours in the gym every day getting the perfectly sculpted body which we now see in fashion shows and between the pages of magazines; a lifestyle of drinking and unhealthy food leads to a build up of fat around the chest area and these, rather cruelly, have come to be known as man boobs.  However, there is good news, as recent reports indicate that male breast reduction surgery is now much better and much more effective than it was a few short years ago.  Different liposuction methods are now being used which have been found to be much more effective and patients are less likely to experience the scarring which they had to live with in the past.

It seems that this news comes on the back of a sea-change in the male culture of this country. We are finally starting to make the connection between our binge-drinking culture and how we look physically; one in five men in a recent survey expressed concern that the amount they drank was starting to affect their physical appearance. The insecurity is not just limited to the infamous beer belly anymore, men are now becoming aware that their chests are being scrutinised by society as well.  Men undergoing breast reduction surgery some 10 to 15 years ago may not have been happy with the outcome, but the advances which have been made in the interim mean that many men are now being given a new lease of life. Of course, surgery should only be seen as the last resort; if you or your partner fear that man boobs may be starting to appear, simply cut back on the alcohol and try binging on salads and regular exercise instead!

The Mirror revealed not only the story, but also the family sporting matching bikinis, clearly proud to show off what they had bought with their hard-earned money.  With their matching blonde hair, the family resemblance is clear amongst the siblings; a resemblance only heightened by the fact that they all now have matching boob jobs as well! The 50 year old mother has had her breasts augmented to a staggering 34DD after a number of procedures which have steadily built her up from her original 34B size. She is the proud mother of eight children but, as any mother will know, childbirth and nursing took its toll on her breasts and she was left with what she deemed to be “milk bottles” and even after one surgery she was still not satisfied with the way she looked. It was her daughter who inspired her to get back on the table and under the knife.  Her daughter had a successful breast operation and was much happier with the result than her mother had been with hers and this convinced the mother of eight to try again and the second time around she was much happier. She told the Mirror:

“My daughters say I inspired them to have boob jobs but I’ve got them to thank for encouraging me to get mine done again. There’s no mistaking the family resemblance – but now we’ve got the boobs to match too,”

Going through surgery can be a very stressful and confusing time and having people, especially close family members, who have been there before can offer unrivalled guidance and support during the entire process from the first decision to the post-surgical recovery.  This is one family where such support and encouragement has clearly paid off and has meant that sisters, and the mother, are doing it for themselves.

Jackson has offered advice to celebrities in the past, including surgery success stories like Sharon Osbourne and now she is turning her attention to regular citizens like you and me; her message is simple, that everyone and anyone should actively consider some form of surgical enhancement. She told Sky News:

“I’ve never met or been in touch with anyone who is totally happy the way they are”

She went on to tackle a big taboo in society that people, no matter what they say in public, are attracted to, and value highly, the concept of beauty.  She did say it was politically incorrect to make such a statement but her own good looks have given her “better chances” in life and she feels she has also gotten an “easier ride” because of her enhanced looks. Whilst this may be slightly true, it is certainly true that most people still value personality and contribution to society over mere looks. Where plastic surgery comes in is that it can help transform people’s confidence so that their personality shines through; if you feel beautiful, you will appear more beautiful and, for a lot of people, surgery is really the only way to correct not only physical flaws but mental doubts as well.

Jackson is well-known on the surgery circuit and is a veritable regular, having undergone nose-jobs, several facelifts, breast augmentation and liposuction procedures. Much of her body may now be unnatural, but her advice is down-to-earth and 100% real; if you’re unhappy with the way you look surgery offers you the chance to change yourself and change your life.

A poll commissioned by Oxygen media has shown that, despite fears about job security and financial stability plaguing their generation, 63% of 18 to 34 year old thought positively about cosmetic surgery whilst the figure rose to 73% for those people aged 35-49.  One of the lighter points of the survey was that 22% of women said they would rather have breast augmentation surgery than receive a diamond bracelet; one feels many male partners would also prefer spending money on a boob job than a decorative piece of jewellery as well. 

Dr. Gilbert Lee, a U.S based plastic surgeon has spoken out about the buoyant industry, saying that: “Interest in plastic surgery remains very strong, despite the economy.” You can read other blogs on this page which might give an indication as to why this is.  Almost 25% of women who took part in the survey said that, if they suddenly gained a windfall of $10,000, they would prefer to spend the money on cosmetic surgery rather than invest it; such an attitude may not be prudent but it certainly spells good times ahead for the plastic and cosmetic surgery industry.

This recession-beating skill is not just limited to the U.S, the British cosmetic surgery industry seems like it is going to be able to weather the storm as well.  During 2008, when the economic storm first broke to mass media and market panic, there was a 5% increase in the number of surgeries performed on women within the U.K. This figure shows that here in Britain we really have a cosmetic surgery industry which is going to remain pert and resilient throughout the economic downturn. This can only be good news as, when the recovery comes, the cosmetic surgery industry will be in an unrivalled position.

Perhaps it isn’t huge news that teenagers dream about changing the way they look via plastic surgery but the startling statistic that 26% of teenage girls are actively thinking about having cosmetic surgery is extremely disturbing and it is clearly connected to body insecurities which are sadly rife for young women; nine out of ten young women who responded to the BBC survey said that they were unhappy with their body. Obviously, being unhappy with your body is as normal a part of being a teenager as mood-swings and regrettable fashion choices, but when this insecurity drives people into the surgeon’s table then it is surely a trend which needs to be addressed, and quickly.

At just 13, one respondent told the survey that when she was 16 she was going to go to the U.S in order to have a boob job there. “The things I don’t like about my body are my breasts…I spend almost 100 per cent of my life thinking about it,” she told the BBC. Hopefully, in three years time she will have grown to like her looks a bit more. The pressure on young girls to look a certain way seems to now come from all ends of society, from magazines, T.V and the fashion industry; girls are taught that there is only one way to look and anything else is a dangerous deviation from the norm.

At any age, it is women who top the tables of plastic surgery. 9 out of 10 of all cosmetic surgery procedures performed by members of the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons were performed on women.

New York-based plastic surgery practise Profiles and Contours have noted that a younger demographic are enquiring about updating their looks through one of the new variations on the face-lift.  Director of Profiles and Contours, Dr. Mark A Erlich has spoken out about the trend, saying that:
“What we’re seeing right now is a dramatic move away from the idea that a face lift is only effective for older or middle-aged patients. Younger women and men are finding out about newer, smaller-scale procedures, and they are taking advantage of these options to achieve results that look very natural and appropriate.”

Whereas it might have been the over 55’s who previously ventured into the world of facelifts, patients are now coming in who are in their 30’s or 40’s and who are searching for a more permanent way to turn back the clock.  One of the main reasons why such a younger audience is now being attracted to the facelift is that, with new procedures entering the market all the time, the recovery time needed is now nowhere near as grand as it once was. Younger people, who perhaps can’t spare the time which the retired older generation can, can now have facelifts and be back at work looking younger and more energised much quicker.

One of the new, speedier, procedures is called the ‘S-Lift’ and it uses small incisions to reduce the appearance of loose skin and muscle. Because it uses small incisions, recovery times are a lot shorter. As younger people flock towards facelifts perhaps some of the stigma and humour surrounding them will begin to evaporate and more and more people will see them as a more permanent alternative to Botox and collagen facial fillers; that will certainly put a smile on the cosmetic surgery industries face.

It all started when the twins, Jo and Kerry, went under the knife when they were younger to have nose jobs.  They told the Daily Mail that, because they were so used to doing everything together since they were children that checking into the same clinic for the same surgery just seemed like a natural progression and, at least to them, didn’t seem as strange as some people might first believe it to be.  One of the siblings, Kerry, said:

“It might sound barmy to some to have cosmetic surgery just because your twin is having it, but we would hate to look different, so we had to have the cosmetic surgery together.”

Indeed everybody ages differently; even twins would not be guaranteed to keep their identical looks as they aged. This is because the ageing process can be drastically affected by lifestyle choices, such as smoking or heavy drinking, as well as genetics. By turning to cosmetic surgery as they age (both twins are now 34) the twins can ensure that they both keep their identity without losing their youthful looks.  The £60,000 the twins have so-far spent is only likely to increase as they continue to with their equal obsession in cosmetic surgery. So far they’ve had breast enlargements, Botox and eyelifts and keep their identical look flowing with matching hair extensions and clothes. It’s a look which is certainly going to get positive male attention from them and it highlights the huge advances in cosmetic surgery over the last few years. If two women can undergo the same procedure to look the same then it really shows the consistency doctors can now achieve.

Dr. Marco Faria Correa spoke out to the Jakarta Post, saying that:

“With changing standards of aesthetic surgery for men and more liberal attitudes, we see an increase in the number of men opting for cosmetic surgery.”

Men are already taking more care of their skin, having more expensive haircuts and, largely thanks to a new culture of male celebrity, are taking much more care over how they style themselves and what they wear; plastic surgery and facelifts seem to just be the next logical step on from this.   However, it isn’t simply vanity which is pushing men into more and more complicated, harsh and expensive procedures.

Men have always been competitive in the world of business and now this competitive streak has boiled over in the realm of cosmetic surgery.  Surgery is a way for men to carry on looking young and energetic and this can only be a good thing in the tiring and stressful world of business. Women have long known that, sadly, appearances count for a lot in this cynical world and it seems that now, for better or for worse, men are now catching on to this idea as well.  Whilst men are beginning to make their mark on the world of surgery, it is still women who dominate, with breast augmentation procedures constantly being the top of the surgery charts on both side of the Atlantic, liposuction is also a phenomenally popular surgery. However, as men continue to want to stay ahead and continue to chase ideals which they see on the billboards and in the magazines all around them, there is no doubt that they may well soon match women in terms of the number of them going under the knife.

As the recession continues to bite and there seems to a never-ending cycle of news reports about people being laid off and large-scale job losses at multi-national companies who had previously seemed invincible, people want to take whatever steps they can to ensure they keep their jobs. However, in difficult times such as these, you wouldn’t think that people had the cash available to spend on plastic surgery and yet this latest news seems to suggest that people are seeing plastic surgery as an investment; professionals are clearly hoping that they can secure pay-rises or simply secure their jobs by investing in the way they look.

Dr. Fredric Brandt, who works in New York, has spoken out about the news, saying that:

“They consider it an investment, they feel the money they’re spending on this will help them get a job and that it will pay for itself and then some.”

Whilst non-invasive procedures have always been popular with professionals as they have very quick recovery times, this report also highlights that it is larger procedures which are also being undertaken. Face-lifts and even breast augmentations are being performed on the 40+ generation in an attempt to push their way to the front of a jobs market. However, with procedures such as these, recovery times are much longer and thus, if you were to have one, then you would have to have some time off work and this might not help secure a job in a struggling place of employment. Essentially, whilst cosmetic surgery could help you, it could also hinder you if you have to remove yourself from your job in order to recover. It is likely, as the recession continues to bite, that more people will turn to cosmetic surgery, both to help their employability and to help themselves.

It has long been known that there is a link between having a higher than average BMI and an increased risk of developing certain types of cancer but this is the first time, after this research by scientists at the University of Gothenburg, that the trend has been looked at going the other way.  This is essentially the first proof that weight loss surgery could, in fact, be even more beneficial than losing weight naturally. It was this information which brought the scientists to conclude that well-timed weight loss surgery could well be highly beneficial to the long-term health of female patients; however no such conclusion has yet been reached as to whether this is also the case for obese males. One of the lead authors on the study has spoken out, saying that:

“The current exploratory report on cancer further underlines the favourable effects of bariatric surgery, particularly in women.”

Cancer is one of the biggest killers in the U.K, and yet our country is also facing an obesity crisis. It would seem like news which was too good to be true if a way were found to synthesise treatments for both conditions.  Whilst this news is cause for excitement, we must also remain cautious. Many more investigations need to be carried out, as well as attempts to determine whether this treatment can also be beneficial for men as well as for women. We here on this blog will certainly be keeping an eye out for any developments and will let you know as soon as something new is revealed. In the meantime, we hope you all stay healthy.