UK NEWS
MEN WHO CAN'T FACE 50 ARE TURNING TO SURGERY
Not everybody can look this good without help
By Jane Wharton
THE number of men undergoing nip and tuck surgery has rocketed by 140 per cent in five years, reveals a new report.
Where once cosmetic procedures were the preserve of women, it seems today’s fiftysomething man is just as likely to go under the knife.
The baby boomer generation of men can’t face ageing naturally if they don’t have to, say surgeons.
“The idea of men letting themselves go with age is no longer accurate. We’ve seen a dramatic increase in men of this age coming to our clinics,” said Liz Dale, director of the Harley Medical Group.
Liposuction is the favourite procedure. Fat siphoned off from abdomens, flanks, chests and chins accounts for 24 per cent of all cosmetic surgery on men over 50.
The amount of fat sucked out can range from 50mls to three litres – the equivalent of more than six pints – and a typical procedure costs around £3,700.
One in five operations were to remove eye bags (called blepharoplasty), which is claimed to take 10 years off a man’s appearance. Eye bags can be removed for £2,300.
Facelifts accounted for 14 per cent of all operations, followed by nose jobs at 11 per cent and tummy tucks at eight per cent.
Seven per cent of the older men opted for a neck lift, while brow lifts accounted for five per cent of operations and chin implants three per cent.
Having ears pinned back – an otoplasty, which was once thought to be a childhood operation – is increasingly popular with adults, accounting for two per cent of operations on middle-aged men.
Ms Dale stressed that, especially where liposuction is concerned, all reputable surgeons should establish that the problem area was “stubborn fat” which could not be shifted with diet and exercise.
She added: “It is not a quick cure for weight gain. Before accepting a patient our surgeons will want to be sure that the patient has taken measures to reduce his weight.
“Obese patients would not be operated on.”
Meanwhile, more disturbing reports have emerged of people being driven to desperate measures to try to get a Hollywood body – by performing surgery on themselves. Some have glued back their ears, tried to iron wrinkles from their faces, or cut open their stomachs in a DIY tummy tuck.
One man even tried to rebuild his nose using a chicken bone.
Dr David Veale, from the Priory Hospital, London, said only the most depressed and desperate were likely to try such measures – but he blamed Britain’s growing obsession with celebrity culture.
“These are very extreme cases but they do happen,” he told psychologists at a conference in Bristol.
“These people are very, very desperate and their image of themselves is totally distorted.”
He said society was now fixated on looks, adding: “The people who have lots of money can afford plastic surgery and then, as a result, are putting more of a focus on looks and outer beauty.”
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