Plastic Surgery: Yay or Nay

In 2006, Americans had 11.5 million cosmetic surgeries, according to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. The top surgical procedures included liposuction, breast augmentation and reduction, eyelid surgery, and abdominoplasty. Makemeheal.com shows pictures, suggesting dozens of celebrities received cosmetic surgeries or should. Why? What happened to our society? Why do we value appearance over character? It seems like once a person begins to get plastic surgery for cosmetic reasons, it would be difficult to stop. Many women could think of something they would like to change about nearly every part of their bodies. We spend thousands and millions of dollars, risking complications from the surgeries and even the nonsurgical procedures just to boost our confidence and become more accepted. Wouldn't it be better to become more accepting as a society instead of trying to achieve the perfect bodies?


People with Down Syndrome may never have "perfect bodies," but some parents decide to get closer to ideal for their children. A quote from a plastic surgeon from Dr. Len Leshin's site,

"It is a challenge for the aesthetic surgeon to make good-looking people more handsome. But it is even more rewarding to "normalize" people who are isolated because of their ugly facial expression so that they may be reintegrated into a group of friends from which they may have already anxiously withdrawn. Children with Down's syndrome are frequently concealed from the public by their parents. The children suffer from two disadvantages: Their mental abilities are limited and they have ugly facial features.(1)"

Dr. Leshin describes the surgeries and the some of the controversy. This video chronicles one family's choice to have their three-year-old boy with Down Syndrome altered through plastic surgery. It seems like in this situation the surgery will benefit the parents more than the child. People with Down Syndrome are often happy with their appearance, as the video shows through questioning them. It is unfortunate that people with Down Syndrome do not get to choose for themselves due to the necessity of surgery early in life.


In my opinion, plastic surgery should be reserved for medical reasons. At the very least, individuals need to make decisions about their own bodies. And, whether perfectly sculpted by God and/or doctors or imperfectly formed, we should appreciate each other!