Cosmetic surgery is increasingly becoming affordable and it is now no longer a reserve for the wealthy. More people are now embracing surgery as a way of improving their appearance. Plastic surgery is done to remove blemishes on the skin or alter a part of the body to achieve perfection.
A while ago, surgical procedures to improve the body’s appearance were rare because of either financial implications or reservations caused by taboos, religious reasons or little research about the effectiveness of surgery. A lot of research has been done on cosmetic surgery over the years and people are more informed. In addition, doctors and private hospitals like the North West Independent Hospital have substantially decreased the cost of plastic surgery and introduced safe medical technologies allowing for more and more people to get the surgeries done.
Research has led to the introduction of non-surgical procedures the likes of Chemical Peel and Botox as a way of allowing people to improve their body image and beauty. Since the media keeps raising the beauty standards of people, medicine has to keep up with the changing trends, thereby the constant discovery of new ways of performing cosmetic surgery.
The International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery did a survey on the countries with a high percentage of citizens that don’t mind going under the knife to improve their body images and discovered the leading ones to be:
1. South Korea
According to a report released by the Economist, over 360,000 total plastic surgery procedures were recorded in South Korea, Asia in 2010. When the percentage of the total population is computed and compared with that of America, Asia ranks higher than the US. Asia has now become the world’s medical centre attracting potential clientele from all over the world. South Korea has the biggest number of clients mostly in need of nose jobs, double eyelid surgery, liposuction and blepharoplasty. More research has shown that one in every five women in Seoul has undergone some kind of plastic surgery.
2. Greece
Despite the floundering economy, Greece takes position 2 in the total number of surgical procedures undertaken. This could be because the procedures are less costly compared to other countries. The technologically advanced medical equipment makes it one of the best places to visit when in need of a cosmetic procedure. The most common plastic surgeries in Greece in the year included breast augmentations followed by penis enlargements (512 in number), which is ten times over the average of all the other countries that made it to the top 5 list.
3. Italy
Anti-aging cosmetic procedures are best performed in Italy. Plastic surgery done here will hide away all evidence of advancing in years. This is done through injectable fillers and Botox (Botulinum Toxin). The procedure injects the fillers and Botox to fill up the eye circles, cheeks, wrinkles and uplift the chin. Italians do not welcome aging and always use surgery to amend any premature aging appearances. Every year, approximately 815,000 cosmetic surgery procedures are performed in Italy. Liposuction comes in third place after Botox and injection fillers with almost 69,000 procedures every year.
4. Brazil
Brazil is known to be a country of beautiful people. This raises the standard of body image which is why breast implants and liposuction are the most widespread surgical procedures for body enhancements. People must always look hot. Surgery is a symbol of status in Brazil and almost any form of plastic surgery is welcome. Brazilians are highly motivated by their government because of the tax deduction system put on surgical procedures. A percentage of the income tax goes to the subsidization of plastic surgery procedures as a way of supporting elective cosmetic surgery.
5. Colombia
Colombia, just like her neighbour Brazil, has a population that loves to adorn and improve their appearance and that is probably why approximately 90,000 people go under the knife every year. The most popular procedure performed in this country is liposuction for both the non-surgical and surgical cases. Shakira’s home country is now one of the leading countries in cosmetic tourism with foreigners coming from far and wide for different procedures.
Even though there are more than enough safe options for plastic surgery, one can never be too careful. With the increase in cosmetic tourism, unscrupulous businessmen are also taking advantage of the unsuspecting people. Some experts advise against going abroad for cosmetic surgery to avoid falling in the hands of quack surgeons whose main motivation is making a quick buck. However, if you must travel for the surgery, you need to do your homework to ensure you are dealing with professionals.
