More and more
Japanese - old, young, women and increasingly men - turn to cosmetic
surgery when they don't like what they see in the mirror. Cosmetic
surgery has been touting "Beauty is skin deep" as the motto for
self-investment - to improve one's self-confidence, social life, and
career advancement. In the past, plastic surgery used to be known as a
shadowy practice among celebrities, bar hostesses, and suspects running
away from the law. In just a few years, cosmetic surgery has emerged as
the hottest trend throughout society - not just here in Japan, but
everywhere else in Asia.
Demand for
cosmetic surgery has surged in Japan due to several reasons: change in
cultural attitudes toward plastic surgery; cheaper and no-scalpel
procedures; media propaganda; and a sluggish economy intensifying
competition for jobs.
Conventional
wisdom once held that altering one's face was not only immodest but also
disrespectful to one's parents. As the first ones to react to changes
in fashion and to novelty, the dynamic young have often set trends in
Japan, ignoring social stigma and traditional practices. By embracing
cosmetic surgery, the young women and men found themselves to be more
sociable, glamorous and self-assured as individuals in society.
In addition, new
noninvasive procedures and affordable prices have encouraged many people
to walk into cosmetic surgery clinics that hold promises for a better
future. Women and men of all ages are nipping and tucking, injecting and
implanting, sucking and suturing, all in pursuit of their ideal
appearance. Without going under a knife, one can acquire double eyelids
with sutures in 10 minutes for as little as ¥50,000, or get injections
of botox to diminish wrinkles and hyaluronic acid, a tissue-filler, to enlarge noses and chins.
Furthermore,
women's magazines, promotional fliers, newspaper inserts, and TV
programs constantly pitch the glamorous possibilities of cosmetic
surgery to millions of Japanese, creating a false security that being
aesthetically attractive can resolve all personal problems. To drive
home that point, Koji Kaneda produced a weekly TV program, Beauty Colosseum,
in which women with sad tales in desperate cases get a complete
makeover by a panel of beauty experts. After the "Cinderella
transformation", their friends or family members didn't even recognize
these women. The popularity of the show has inspired numerous TV viewers
to sign up for cosmetic surgery; many of them were in their teens or
20s. Even the media has caught on in presenting good-looking news
reporters and commentators in the belief that a broadcaster's
attractiveness can appeal to a larger audience.
As the
unemployment rate fluctuates during the extended economic slump, the
growth of cosmetic surgery has soared in society. Cosmetic surgeons say
clinic's testimonials showed that most customers had cosmetic surgery
done due to insecurities - fear of losing or finding a job, anxious
about being too plain-looking, or worried about showing signs of aging.
Since appearance is considered culturally important in Japan, the
pressure on workers to look their best - especially women, salespeople,
people in media related-work - compelled many of them to seek cosmetic
surgery for beauty enhancement. In fact, "recruit seikei" is
the latest business buzzword - cosmetic surgery for the sake of landing a
job. Doctors claimed that their older patients over 50 wanted
face-lifts to look younger to keep or find work and that younger
patients wanted to look better to get an edge over others.
The most popular cosmetic surgery procedure in Japan (and elsewhere in Asia) is blepharoplasty
- double eyelids created by making a crease above the eye. Besides the
much-demanded nose jobs and the anti-wrinkle treatments, another common
facial procedure is reshaping a broad face by injecting botox
to shrink puffy cheeks. More recently, breast-enlargement has been the
rage - even among girls in their teens. The common method of enlarging
busts uses breast implants filled with saline or other substances. A
technique getting more attention nowadays involves filling the breasts
with unwanted fat sucked out of the stomach, buttocks or other parts of
the body. The cost for a breast-enlargement procedure can range from
¥300,000 to over ¥1 million.
However, not every
cosmetic surgery operation produced the desired results - problems that
are often underreported in the media. To exact legal retribution in a
medical malpractice suit is rare in Japan. Nevertheless, bargain-hunting
Japanese take the risk in choosing cut rates offered by unqualified or
unknown cosmetic practitioners or go on an inexpensive overseas package
cosmetic tour that includes airfare, hotel, sightseeing and a cosmetic
surgery operation.
Obsessed by
physical appearance, girls who underwent cosmetic surgery this year are
getting younger - a disturbing trend. Most of the younger patients, aged
from 10 to 15, went with their mothers to the cosmetic surgery clinics.
Many carried photos of their idols and requested operations to look
like them. Both mother and child believed that for anyone to attain
popularity was to look cute.
In a materialistic
world, cosmetic surgery seems to be a quick solution to achieving
personal success. Perhaps so, but there are many cases of failures that
have been left untold. As long as society continues to idolize youth and
beauty, the cosmetic surgery industry will make a killing for years to
come.
(First published on UniOrb.com, June 3, 2005)