Do you need cosmetic surgery - Essay Example

The bonafides of genuine, necessary plastic surgery are, of course, beyond debate. Reconstructive plastic surgery, which is performed to correct functional impairments caused by burns, trauma-induced bone injuries, congenital and developmental abnormalities, such as cleft palates, and abnormalities caused by diseases such as cancer or tumors, is an essential and powerful tool of medical science. It is cosmetic surgery, or its more polished moniker, ‘Aesthetic plastic surgery,’ which is a fraud perpetrated on susceptible women and men by unscrupulous beneficiaries.

Cosmetic surgery refers to the use of surgical techniques merely for the purpose of enhancing physical appearance. Cosmetic surgery runs the entire gamut of procedures from rhinoplasty and liposuction, to ‘tummy tucks’ and breast implants. It is medical science which has been corrupted for commercial use. It is a commercial industry, which has more in common with the cosmetic industry of fairness creams and hair colors, than with medical surgical procedures. The need of the hour is to bring cosmetic surgery under a strict regulatory mechanism as it is mere commercial exploitation, involves several risks, and engenders psychological disorders and abnormalities.

According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, Americans spent nearly $10.7 billion on cosmetic procedures in 2010. Since 1997, there has been over 155% increase in the total number of cosmetic procedures. In 2010, there has been more than 1.6 million surgical procedures performed in the US. This in the midst of a recession which sees one of the highest rates of unemployment in the history of the nation! These statistics are convincing evidence of the burgeoning commercial aspect of cosmetic surgery.

The ever-increasing reach of the cosmetic surgery industry is the result of a cleverly orchestrated program of advertisement and promotion, aimed at a beauty conscious younger generation. Fox's reality TV makeover show, "The Swan 2,” was won by DeLisa Stiles after “she morphed into a beauty queen” (Dittman, APA), with the help of the entire gamut of cosmetic surgery procedures – from face to feet. According to the British Medical Journal, Britons spend over 400 million dollars a year on cosmetic surgery, and it’s one of the most common reasons women give for non-property loans.

In the United Kingdom, My Big Fat Plastic Surgery Prize Draw is a lottery sponsored by a cosmetic surgery group, with ?4,000 worth of surgery of your choice as the prize. Prize draws, loyalty card schemes, divorcee packages, magazine competitions and online deals are all part of the advertising strategy to pull susceptible youth into the money-spinning cosmetic surgery industry (skininc.com). These marketing gimmicks are unscrupulous means of generating profit. The commercial potential of cosmetic surgery has even spawned a tourism industry.

‘Plastic Surgery Package Tours’ are now being hawked not only by several agencies, but also by governments, such as Thailand. The Tourism Authority of Thailand has promoted cosmetic surgery as it would any commodity – eighty percent of the clientele is foreign (Cullen, Time). Such a blatantly commercial enterprise continues to masquerade as a part of medical science! In aggressively marketing cosmetic surgery as a money-spinning concern, its advocates and beneficiaries conveniently ignore the