In recent years, many parents have opted to surprise their teenage daughters with breast augmentation surgery as a birthday or graduation present.
One cosmetic surgeon has noticed a 20-30% increase in the number of cosmetic surgery procedures he performs on young people. Many of these are for breast implants. He attributes this trend to several factors, including the growing popularity of cosmetic surgery among the parents of teenagers, the rise in advertising for these procedures, and the example being set by many celebrities. The public perception today is that cosmetic surgery procedures are very common and have become an accepted part of our culture.
The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery claims that breast augmentation surgery for women under 19 has increased by approximately 500% in the past 10 years. It has only increased 300% among the rest of the adult population.
While parents are lining up to offer their teenage daughters breast implants, it is not necessarily an advisable move. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved breast augmentation for women 18 and over. Despite the fact that many cosmetic surgeons are happy to perform the procedure on girls aged 16-19, there is growing evidence that it is better to wait a few years before having the surgery. Many women’s breasts continue to develop well into their early 20’s. Performing breast enlargement surgery on a girl who is still developing can lead to complications down the road.
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