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In today's society, appearance is highly valued. Vanity has always been a human flaw, but in recent years, people not only care more about what they look like, medical advances have provided ways to completely alter appearance. Plastic surgery is an industry these days. There are a variety of procedures that range from minor injections to nipping and tucking every flaw.
In March 2007, the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery released statistics for surgical and nonsurgical procedures in the United States. In 2006 alone, there were 11.5 million cosmetic surgeries performed, a one percent increase since 2005. The most popular procedures were Botox injections and liposuction. As an avid observer, I can easily diagnose the most common symptoms of plastic surgery - frozen faces and tight tummies.
Despite what the statistics show, the root of the problem is not that the availability of procedures has increased. Nor is the problem that the taboo of augmenting the body is slowly disappearing. Instead, it boils down to greed and vanity. The cosmetic industry is banking off these procedures, and they feed on the insecurity of the consumer. The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery reports the global market is now worth $20 billion, and the number of cosmetic procedures in the U.S. is growing by 15 percent a year. Not only is it advertised openly, but there are people going under the knife on national television, only further numbing society to the effects of plastic surgery. Society has successfully disguised the drawbacks of plastic surgery by homogenizing the product - perfection.
Women, men and even teens are undergoing procedures because no one is ever satisfied with what they see in the mirror. For some, plastic surgery is maintenance. For others, it's just one little imperfection that has been magnified to the point of obsession, and in some cases, it's wanting to transform their identity.
Plastic surgery isn't just a makeover on the outside, it's a confidence booster, or so they say. As soon as the obsession with our "imperfections" is satisfied by a procedure, the mind can rest at ease. Right?
Society is merciless. We've been told by the media, by Hollywood and by each other that outer beauty is what people really see. Age is not valued - the young want to look older and the old want to look younger. The plastic surgeon's magic wand is the fairy godmother our society never had, and we are using all our wishes to make ourselves the Cinderella or Prince Charming that we have fantasized about for years. We are ridding ourselves of all the ugly ducklings and turning ourselves into swans; the caterpillars are emerging as butterflies.
Humanity today is defined by imperfection. No one will ever be completely satisfied with how they look or who they are because it is human nature to compare and to criticize. Plastic surgery goes inside to make the outside look better, and that knife has successfully chipped away at our core, taking away the essence of our being. It's obvious people recognize that improvement begins with themselves, but instead of paying millions of dollars to an industry that is only a temporary fix, we should begin with the heart and soul. Despite what society says, beauty is not a commodity, no matter how time has changed. We can refuse to put a price on outward appearance by beginning to put more value on inner beauty.
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