This is from an excellent recent article in the Deseret News:
LOS ANGELES — The baseball that hit Darlene in the face changed more than her appearance. It made her the butt of classmates’ jokes. More importantly, she had trouble breathing. By 16, she wanted it fixed. Tony was also 16 when he reached the same conclusion about his oversized jaw.
They are part of a small but significant trend: teenagers turning to plastic surgery to solve physical deformities, correct congenital defects, or make them look and thus feel better about themselves.
Becca is one of those teens. She asked for breast augmentation for graduation from a New York City high school. So is William, who worked summer jobs in Indianapolis to help pay for surgery to remove excessive male breast tissue.
Experts say plastic surgery can be necessary for teens in some situations, but they question many of the procedures and worry that plastic surgery won’t cure underlying problems.
Trending up or down?
The plastic surgery “trend” for teens depends on who counts and when. Researchers at the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery call reported increases a media concoction. Their numbers show a slight drop from 10 years ago. But in 2005 the numbers dipped, so now comparisons to that year show an “increase.” They count about 209,000 procedures for all kids 18 and under.
