Thursday, June 12, 2008

does my butt look to big in my size 00 jeans?

Fake breast, small ears, less tummy, more butt, straight nose, bigger, brighter cheek bones--the last thing a teenager needs to worry about--right?

But with society driven by plastic surgery targeting self-esteem issues and body image solutions for adults, teenagers are also listening.

So that boy who had "dumbo ears" in elementary school or the girl who was afraid to shower in gym class because of her "lopsided breasts," can "swiftly fix" these problems with an ear-pinning and breast implants.

ParentCentral.ca states that 87, 600 surgical operations were done on 13-19 year olds in the last year, mostly for male breast reductions and nose reshaping. This equals a five per cent representation of overall procedures as a whole.

It all seems so simple by just saying it, but even thinking about surgery at this age represents the bigger problem of fitting in. Frederick Lukash, a plastic surgeon from New York who specifically specializes in adolescent surgeries, says that teens are mostly looking to fit in rather than stand out.

"Adults who want plastic surgery are interested in rejuvenation. Kids largely want to be part of the crowd, not to be picked on or bullied. Every parent wants their child to rise above the crowd. But first they have to feel part of it and they can't do that if they are tormented," Lukash told Reuters.

Lukash believes that plastic surgery can actually make a difference for a patient, even though he sometimes recommends psychological help to his younger ones. Lukash tells ParentCentral.ca about a 14-year-old girl who had saggy breasts and developed an eating disorder. After Lukash performed a breast lift, the eating disorder went away.

Ann Kearney-Cooke, a psychologist and body image expert says that surgery will not solve any low self-esteem problems.

"Self-esteem is not just about how big your ears are. Instead of rushing to the plastic surgeon, let's help these kids develop skills so they can be effective at handling these situations or saying 'don't talk about my ears like that'," she told Reuters.

Kearney-Cooke says that kids have always been pressured to fit in, but now they are more focused on their appearances and image making all together.

"We need to help boys and girls figure out what are their signature strengths and how to play them up," she says.

However Lukash still believes that appearance is important.

"It's why we shower and get a haircut. It is hard to deny out of hand the individual's right to be improved."

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