Primarily considered a procedure for the rich and famous, plastic surgery seemed for many, out of reach. For many years the media has seemed obsessed with appearance, covering the many changes which celebrities made to their bodies, or even if they hadn't, posing the question, has she? Hasn't she?
Even teenage magazines, targeted at youngsters of 13 - 17 cover more than their fair share, scrutinising celebrities overall appearance. You have to wonder whether this kind of unnecessary scrutiny makes our children more susceptible to being body and image conscious at too young an age. There is already too much pressure on teenagers trying to achieve wafer like figures to resemble their idols, not just extending to the female of the species either.
Has the real reason for undergoing the knife been forgotten? Is too much emphasis on obtaining the body beautiful rather than a body which is liveable?
Plastic surgery is the procedure which is used to correct or improve deformities and defects of the face or body, similarly it is also the procedure which is used to try to correct scarring or abnormalities caused by injury, accident or illness.
A real reason for wanting to take the seemingly drastic steps to alter ones image, comes with the need to be normal or at least achieve a level of normality which is acceptable to fit into today's society.
Unfortunately, human nature dictates an unnecessary need to stare at things which are not considered quite ordinary, not taking into account the extent of damage the knock-on effects can have on a person health.
Staring, finger pointing, name calling and taunting can have deep set emotional effects on a person's demeanour, leading to emotional and psychological problems. It is often the emotional problems which have more effect than the physical, leaving scars which take far longer to heal than any outward scarring corrected by plastic surgery.
If we remember back to the 1980s, we might recall Simon Weston, he was a normal 17 year old boy, who joined the army and was sent off to perform his duties with many of his colleagues upon the RFA Sir Galahad, stationed just off the Falkland islands, unfortunately, the ship was set alight by enemy bombs leaving Simon severely burnt, his facial features unrecognisable.
However this brave young soldier rejected all attempts from medical officials to provide him with extensive plastic surgery which would offer a slim chance of restoring some features, instead he choose to become an inspiration to others who had suffered a similar experience and continues to do so.
I think we can all understand and appreciate the desire to look good, without this desire there would be no market for the wide range of beauty products for available today to challenge the signs of aging, but if plastic surgery had been limited purely to those with disfigurements rather than those wanting to gain cosmetic excellence would there have been the pressure to look good in the first place?
The reality of the matter is that nowadays, plastic surgery is a commonly placed procedure which is available to most people; it is also now widely accepted as the norm. This is a trend which is set to stay, increasingly so as more procedures are made available, in some cases individuals are becoming addicted to the highs which procedures have on them, gradually seeing themselves morphing into their ideal.
So is this a worrying concept when girls as young as 15 are requesting bust enhancement as their birthday presents or is it simply the evolution of the beauty industry from plumping rejuvenating creams to surgical procedures.
Author Resource:-
Anna Stenning researches whether opting to have plastic surgery is becoming a worrying trend to achieve perfection rather than being used for its originally purposes.