In September 2010, the US Food and Drug Administration approved the CoolSculpting device (manufactured by Zeltiq) for the nonsurgical reduction of fat. Although the FDA has not approved labeling for the device yet, its manufacturers are advertising that the FDA approved claims that it reduces fat by up to 20% in treated areas. They also say that the treatment can be repeated, creating cumulative fat losses of up to 40% in treated areas.
There is a high demand for nonsurgical fat removal. Everybody would love to take a pill, get a shot, and have their areas of unwanted fat disappear quickly […]
Breast augmentation is the most popular plastic surgery procedures used today. Last year, there were nearly 300,000 breast augmentations, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), and it seems unlikely that there will be much of a decline in the near future. Despite changing trends in fashion and style, the trend in human evolution is toward larger breasts, and those who are not where they want to be on the distribution will seek to move up whenever they can. Surgical breast enlargement is almost as old as surgery, and long before that women tried many forms of salves […]
In August, the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ISAPS) released its first-ever detailed compilation of worldwide aesthetic plastic surgery statistics. According to the ISAPS, this marks the first time that “reliable” statistics on the number of surgeons and procedures worldwide have been made available. The survey showed that the countries with the top numbers of surgeons were:
1. United States
2. China
3. Brazil
4. India
5. Mexico
The same five countries had the top number of procedures, with the only difference being that Brazil was second and China third. The USA leads in both the number of plastic surgeons and procedures, having 17.5% of […]
If you see a headline telling you that a new study shows that arms are the most important aspect of feminine beauty, don’t believe it. In looking for a catchy, surprising headline, the media often misrepresents scientific finding, as is the case in this story. One headline on the story reads: “It’s not legs or breasts that make men go weak at the knees–to catch a fellow’s eye, show a bit of arm.” The article goes on to say that “long shapely arms . . . are considered more attractive than endless legs.” But before considering arm lengthening surgery (if […]
Breast enlargement creams are finally, it seems, ready to make the leap from late-night infomercials to the shelves of major retailers. But does this jump to the big time, mean these products give “big time” results?
The claim is that they do. The manufacturer, Rodial, claims that its “Boob Job” product will increase breast size by 8.4% (or elsewhere on the page, half a cup size) if you spread it on your breasts at least twice a day (near mealtimes) for at least 56 days. Rodial also claims that the use of its product will result in a lifting and firming […]
In 2009, a task force for the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) released the results of its detailed study of the prospect of using fat grafting for breast augmentation. Although the committee’s report was cautious, it touched off a media storm about the potential of fat grafting to replace breast implants as the primary method of breast augmentation. In addition, a number of surgeons nationwide began offering breast augmentation with fat grafting.
This becomes the third area where some plastic surgeons seek to use fat grafting to augment volume. Some surgeons also use fat grafting for buttock augmentation and as […]
A paper published in the Archives of Sexual Behavior by researchers from the University of Wellington showed that less than 20% of men look at a woman’s face first when judging her attractiveness.
The study used eye-tracking software to evaluate where men were looking during a five-second period that they looked at and evaluate the attractiveness of a frontal picture of a woman. The initial visual fixations of the men, fixations that occurred within the first two tenths of a second, were on either the breasts or the waist in 80% of cases. In 47% of cases, the men were looking […]
For many parents, sending the kids off to college causes mixed emotions. On the one hand, it is sad and hard to finally let the children go. It is difficult not to worry about the child who will no longer be checking in at night, who cannot ask you for help when he or she needs it. On the other hand, for many parents saying goodbye to a child or children represents a new beginning. This is the start of your third phase in life, when you and your partner can return to life together and enjoy the freedom that […]
In researching her upcoming book, Dr. Debra Gimlin, a sociologist from Aberdeen University, interviewed 80 women from the United States and the United Kingdom who had undergone plastic surgery. She found that more than fifty of the women in the study used the concept of a surgical “other” to push off concerns that they were being vain in seeking plastic surgery.
The interviewees were women aged 20 to 70 who had undergone plastic surgery. Half were from each country. The women described the surgical “other” as:
Narcissistic and shallow
Obsessed with appearance
Ignorant of risks of plastic surgery
Having unreasonable expectations
Working with a shady plastic […]
Actress Heidi Montag made major headlines in the tabloids as well as serious news outlets earlier this year when she underwent ten plastic surgery procedures in one day. The list included revision of previous breast augmentation (to go to larger breast implants) and nose job, as well as liposuction in several places, fat injection in others, buttock augmentation, and others. Shortly after her procedure, she talked about wanting to get her breast implants replaced with even larger implants. Now, though, she talks about feeling trapped inside her body because the breast implants she had thought were too small are now […]
