Gender equality has many perks, one of them being that men can now consider upgrading
their appearance a manly act. It is no longer deemed effeminate for men to focus on self-improvement through eating a healthy diet, exercising, having a plastic surgery procedure, or undergoing one or more cosmetic procedures. In fact, male plastic surgery rate have significantly increased since 2000.
These days, men known for their masculine appeal — whether athletes, performers, politicians, professors, construction workers, computer techies or executives — may be just as likely to contemplate rhinoplasty, breast reduction, a neck lift or liposuction as their female counterparts. The easier it becomes to make yourself look better, the more men want a piece of the action. For this reason, a greater and greater percentage of the male population is seeking the services of a talented plastic surgeon.
Reasons Men Have Plastic Surgery
Plastic surgery has become more and more popular among men. While such procedures have been performed for generations on children born with birth defects (such as cleft lips, ear deformities and large birthmarks) and on individuals who have been injured during battle or in accidents, there are now many plastic surgeries performed on men for more subtle cosmetic reasons. These include the desire to:
- Improve their self-esteem
- Start a new phase of life with a more youthful appearance
- Look less (or more) ethnic
- Feel more attractive in social situations
- Look younger at job interviews
- Feel more confident in the workplace
- Feel less self-conscious when working out, in swim suits, or in intimate situations
Types of Plastic Surgery Popular with Men
In efforts to enhance self-confidence, which in turn can have a marked positive effect on career mobility and personal relationships, more and more men are having the following types of cosmetic procedures (those marked with asterisks are, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, the most commonly requested):
- Blepharoplasty (eyelid lifts)*
- BOTOX® or dermal fillers
- Brow lifts
- Chin augmentation*
- Hair transplant or removal
- Liposuction*
- Male breast reduction (for gynecomastia)*
- Neck lifts*
- Otoplasty (reduction or reorientation of outer ears)
- Pectoral implants
- Removal of acne or other scarring
- Removal of excess skin after bariatric surgery
- Rhinoplasty (“nose jobs”)*
- Tummy tucks
The ability to self-improve through plastic surgery, long denied to men through a misguided definition of masculinity, has now clearly moved into the social arena of acceptable, desirable behavior. For many men, plastic surgery and cosmetic skin treatments enhance not only their sense of well-being, but their sense of virility as well.
Photo by Bhakua 