Is cosmetic or plastic surgery helpful, or damaging to an individual’s mind and body? The two main branches of plastic surgery are reconstructive and cosmetic (“Plastic Surgery Addicts”). This is the reason why the terms cosmetic and plastic are used interchangeably in the medical field. Some people may think that all surgery is the same, although cosmetic and reconstructive surgeries are not identical. The difference is that reconstructive surgery is used to fix parts of the body that are damaged (Lee). Cosmetic surgery is used in removing, altering or rearranging tissues of the body (Lee). The word plastic does not actually refer to real plastic. “Plastic surgery” comes from the Greek word “plastikos”, which means to shape or mold …show more content…
This is called body dysmorphic disorder, commonly referred to as BDD. BDD can lead to many concerns, such as school dropouts and suicides (Olesen 28-29). For instance, one fourth of pre-teens ages nine to thirteen have looked negatively upon themselves (“Teens”). Other people may think that surgery will solve their depression, anxiety and/or marriage and relationship issues. Depression is not something that will just go away; it needs to be gradually worked on. The individual may feel better for a little while, but their depression is still bound to return. The same goes with anxiety. Getting help from someone specialized with disorders would be a better option. As far as marriage is concerned, some men and women criticize their spouses. They may think that altering their body will make their partner happier and want to stay with them. Surgery cannot change life’s predicaments. For example, with intimacy issues, a woman may think that the size of her breasts relates to this problem. Is a spouse that is so judgmental and controlling really worth staying with? The media, magazines, advertising and the internet are an enormous influence on individuals. A person may feel pressure to look like a model that they see in a magazine, or a celebrity on television. Many television shows, especially reality ones, pay greater attention to beauty rather than
In “The Pitfalls of Plastic Surgery,” by Camille Paglia, she argues that American surgeons are being too narrow minded with their work because they use the same models as a representation of what their clients can look like. She suggests that getting plastic surgery has become such a normal thing in America and that society pushes women to get work done in order to get that “perfect” look. Paglia also points out that plastic surgery has “leveled the playing field” with wives and their husbands mistresses (694). Also, she believes that plastic surgery is not only critical in keeping a job, but also in keeping a relationship. Although I agree with some of Paglia’s arguments, I view some of the issues differently such as, needing plastic surgery to keep a marriage, that plastic surgery is for non intellectuals, that Hollywood’s environment encourages women to change their looks, and that nothing good can come out of plastic surgery.
Nowadays we are surrounded with billions of images and we are influenced by the people we see in magazines and advertisements. Celebrities and their lifestyles is one of the main reasons why society emphasises on physical appearance and perfection. The need to feel accepted by others has become another main reason why our society emphasises so much on physical appearance. The media has a strong effect on people, especially young girls. Around 69% of girls say that models influence their idea of the perfect body. The level of skinniness that is shown by models is unachievable and biologically inappropriate, it gives a wrong picture of what an ideal body looks like. Many people believe that they must look like the models in magazine ads and that their life would improve if they got a nose job, a face lift, a tummy tuck etc. Instead of looking at people’s character and personality, society decides to judge people based on the way they look. Society’s emphasis on physical appearance makes many people feel pressured to change their appearance so they can be
Did you know more than 16 billion dollars was spent on Cosmetic Surgery in 2016? (ASPS 2017) Throughout the many decades, cosmetic surgery had become widely known method to enhance an appearance. In recent years, this procedure has become prominent not only among adults but also among adolescents however, popularity does not mean it is safe and the best option. There are numerous negative effects of cosmetic surgery that people, especially adolescents should consider before undergoing such procedures. Some negative effects of cosmetic surgery are high expenses, high medical risks, promotion of unhealthy body image and adverse psychological conditions.
Cosmetic surgery has become increasingly more popular. However, many are unsatisfied with their results. Debra Dunn decided to have cosmetic surgery to fix a bump she had on her nose as a result of a childhood injury. After having two nose jobs and spending thousands of dollars, she was so dissatisfied with her results that she was embarrassed when she left the house and avoided mirrors. When she ventured out in public, she hid behind her hair. Although doctors tried convincing her that her nose was lovely and others would kill for a nose like hers, she greatly regretted ruining the face she was born with. Dunn even felt as though she no longer resembled herself. In an attempt to return her nose back to the nose she was born with, Dunn
In this written piece I will discover the topics of how the beauty media promotion has an impact and result on the appearance of women today and how this can effect someone’s confidence and self-esteem and showing what beautiful is now classed as in today’s beauty world. How this can result in how someone perceives themselves to be and how the media has a big influence on our young adults today how it has influenced people to change their face & body by range of different cosmetic surgery, The effects it can have on the human mind & body According to The Effects of the Media on Body Image: A Meta-Analysis Amanda J. Holmstrom Pages 196-217 | Published online: 07 Jun 2010.
The media group that retouches images skews the “normal” body image of people through many of its outlets, including models in advertising and magazines, and actors in TV and movie productions. “The average model portrayed in the media is approximately 5’11” and 120 pounds. By contrast, the average American woman is 5’4” and 140 pounds” (Holmstrom, 2004). This statistic shows how the media manipulates consumers into believing that because they are not what the average model looks like, they are not living up to a certain standard which implies that they need to look like that to be beautiful. Another research fact that shows a similar concept is that, “In the United States, 94% of female characters in television programs are thinner than the average American woman, with whom the media frequently associate happiness, desirability, and success in life” (Yamamiya et al., 2005). This association of female thinness and happiness, desirability and success makes consumers believe they must achieve this unrealistic thinness to achieve more ultimate goals and fulfillment in life. “The media also explicitly instruct how to attain thin bodies by dieting, exercising, and body-contouring surgery, encouraging female consumers to believe that they can and should be thin” (Yamamiya et al., 2005). This idealization of thinness in the media is seen so much, and is extremely harmful to women’s self confidence and is often associated with body image dissatisfaction, which can be a precursor to social anxiety, depression, eating disturbances, and poor self-esteem (Yamamiya et al.,
Cosmetic surgery, a type of elective surgery undertaken to alter a person’s appearance for reasons beyond injury, illness, or disease, has become increasingly pervasive in society in the past few decades despite sparking controversial debates. (Coleman, 171) While reconstructive surgery is condoned, cosmetic surgery occupies a gray area where physicians “dedicated to saving lives, healing, and promoting health” perform “invasive surgical operations on healthy bodies for the sake of improving appearance.” (Miller, 353) Nevertheless, demand for it is higher than ever with people looking to surgery as an easy method for changing their appearances. This essay will argue that cosmetic surgery is indeed ethical for physicians to perform by examining it through the perspective of the four basic principles of medical ethics: autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, and justice.
In a society so consumed by the ideology of beauty, it makes sense as to why so many women these days undergo cosmetic surgery. The definition of beauty has long been obstructed and changed. In the past, if you look at the woman, you will see they are curvy, during this era being thin meant you were poor where as a beautiful and wealthy woman would be plump because she could afford fine dining. As society has changed, being slender has become the new trend, creating the idea that in order to be truly beautiful one must be thin. The movie stars in Hollywood, although most people realize the beautifying changes that are made to the pictures, this idea of 'beauty ' and 'desire ' still lingers in the mind of whoever comes across it. Our society is bombarded with several different ideologies of beauty but beauty is in the eye of the beholder. The beauty standards that have been set should not be what are shaping people around the world and influencing them to go through with plastic surgery. The use of plastic surgery has changed from a medical procedure used to reconstruct the wounded or people with birth defects to reconstructing something people do not like about themselves. Plastic surgery was used during WWI in 1910 and after the war, skin grafting grew. The first training program in the United States was in 1924 thanks to Dr. John Davis. In 1950-1959, plastic surgery was used broadly to repair cleft pallet. It wasn’t until about
Plastic surgery, a newly developed industry worldwide, has made both positive and negative impacts in people’s daily life. As the economic boost, people no longer have to spend 90 percent of their income on food, instead they do investment on land property, luxury goods that can hedging or even make money after an investment cycle. The boost economy also drives the media industry grow rapidly which urging a group of super models and fashion actresses well-known among people especially female group through magazines, TV advisements. The clothes that models wear and the make ups they use are become the popular and fashion products which pursuing by young ladies to help them stay in fashion and look beautiful. However, the young ladies still
If one is considering cosmetic surgery I suggest reconsidering. Research shows cosmetic surgery can be a risky and costly procedure. Society is pressuring people to look more attractive. Media shows actors to be flawless and the public feels that one should be compared to these actors. Cosmetic surgery is becoming more popular is today’s culture. People are turning to cosmetic surgery for many reasons, some of them are not healthy.
Somewhat surprisingly, patients did not report significant improvements in body image quality of life.” (Sarwer, 268) It seems the long-term effects are not quite yet 100% certain so far, so one cannot say that plastic surgery makes a person`s life better for the rest of his or her life.
To sum up, plastic surgery is aimed to make humanity look better. Thousands of people have these operations performed each year. However,
Plastic surgery is not the best choice for anybody because you never know what your final outcome is which Allison A. stated in 2008. Doctors cannot guarantee you will come out successfully from the surgery room. She also said that it is like a game where you do not know if you win at the end of the play. People turn to cosmetic products for better appearances but when it’s not enough or not satisfying to them, they turn to plastic surgery. They never think about the consequences of what they want to look like or the dangers and risks that are involved. Veronica S. (2007) believes that cosmetic surgery is more harmful than it is beneficial. Unnecessary surgery seems to put women in danger for the sake of Hollywood beauty. We all handle healing differently. Some may heal well and some won’t. Hykra (2005) states that if you have pre-existing health conditions cosmetic surgery can be really dangerous. He also reports that people with heart condition, diabetes, or if you are a smoker, or have allergies you may experience complications that others may not.
Messages within the media indirectly contribute to the rising rate of plastic surgery. Desires to meet the idealisms of media representations are often so consuming that people demand plastic surgery despite all of its associated risks and controversies. To compensate for this up and coming surgical trend, technology has developed more reasonable and attainable options for the public. Millions of operations are now able to be performed on those wishing to fulfill specific gratifcations toward their own personal appearance and/or self-esteem. This is a serious problem in that people are unaware or just simply
Have you ever considered having plastic surgery? After reading this paper you might want the surgery or you might not. Plastic surgery, a form of art, can reconstruct your body and renew your confidence but can you accept the risks involved?