Pop culture’s obsession with plastic surgery

From Lil'Kim to Joan Rivers, plastic surgery knows no bounds.

From Lil’Kim, Pamela Anderson and Kim Kardashian to Mshoza and Nicki Minaj, it's increasingly evident that cosmetic surgery is popular among the rich and famous. These stars are known for acquiring a new set of double D breasts, changing their nose shapes and padding their derrierès to suit their ideal of perfection.

In SA, we have seen socialite and designer Uyanda Mbuli express her dislike for her nose because she felt it was not straight enough. Mbuli underwent rhinoplasty to “fix” her nose and is now reportedly happy with the result.

Kim Kardashian is said to have attained her Brazilian butt through surgery. Although the reality star has denied this, images of her with a smaller derrière have surfaced proving otherwise.

According to media reports, Lil’Kim has undergone several surgeries. Apart from bleaching her skin regularly, she's had her nose and butt "done".

Dr Anthony Youn, a celebrity plastic surgeon, had harsh words for Lil’Kim’s physical transformation. Speaking to radar online, Youn said the hip-hop star had transformed into a different person entirely. According to Youn, Lil'Kim's’s face appeared contoured and had a waxy sheen, which is characteristic of  cheek filler surgery. 

“I suspect that she's had a lot of plastic surgery, including a nose job (or more than one) that's thinned her nose. Her body is much more curvy, and could have undergone enhancement with solid silicone buttock implants. Her overall appearance makes me concerned that she has a serious body image problem,” said Youn.

In a television interview with a local TV station, kwaito star Mshoza said she was not done with plastic surgery yet. The mother of two said she wanted to look as white as Christina Aguilera. She later revealed that she would shelve her plans to undergo plastic surgery until a later stage. On why she was having surgery done, Mshoza explained she wanted to look beautiful and because she could afford it.
 

Dr Paul Skoll, a Cape Town-based surgeon with over 13 years experience in cosmetic surgery, said breast augmentation was the most common procedure among his clients. Skoll counts several celebrities among his patients. In Skoll’s view, surgeons who reapetedly work on people who have had too much surgery have a problem themselves. Skoll does not believe in operating on patients who have unrealistic expectations of the outcome, are too young, physically unfit or psychologically unstable.

Commenting on celebrities who have overstayed their welcome on the plastic surgeon’s table, Skoll believes they had taken it too far. “People like Joan Rivers are not okay, but it does take a willing victim and perpetrator for that to happen. Personally I don’t see too many people who look weird, alien and unhuman. I try to work with people who want a natural look and don’t get noticed,” said Skoll.

UK-based Dr Andrew Kaczynski addresses the celebrity obsession with plastic surgery on his website. Kaczynski believes celebrities are obsessed with youthful perfection because youth is romanticised and physical perfection is idealised. “Indeed, this evanescent quality is probably an ingredient of the fuel feeding this obsession. Combine this with the fact that very few, if any of us, are genetically perfect and you end up with a majority of the country somewhat unsatisfied with their appearance. Add to the fire, the pressure celebrities are under to be examples of perfection to those who consume their movies, TV shows and music videos, and you can imagine the desperate feelings these people have to hold on to this image of perfection or lose their celebrity status.

“Further complicating the mix is that the personalities who go into that line of work tend to already enjoy some degree of narcissism with their coffee and you have a perfect storm. Sure, a good plastic surgeon can improve on nature a bit, fix some of the effects of time and make your day-to-day life a little happier because you smile more when you look in the mirror. But youthful perfection is not something we are capable of producing and someone needs to see that Hollywood gets the memo," he says.

Source: www.drkmd.com