The Daily Mail of London reports that the number of slimming cosmetic procedures are up as UK health officials urge citizens to slim down.
Just as in the United States, there’s an obesity epidemic in the UK — and it’s feeding a boom in demand for cosmetic surgery as a quick way to get rid of excess poundage.
According to a survey by London-based market-research firm Mintel, 22 percent of respondents said they would consider liposuction and excess-skin-removal procedures as quick-fix ways to shed weight.
The Daily Mail quotes a Mintel analyst as saying, “The high level of pressure from the government and health organizations on consumers to lose weight is likely to continue to intensify over the coming years.... This could present the UK cosmetic surgery market with a greater number of opportunities to assist adults with rapid weight loss or provide excess skin removal for those that have lost weight themselves.”
Other survey findings:
- About 40 percent of all respondents — and 48 percent of women respondents — said their waistline was their number one body concern
- Just over 25 percent cited buttocks, hips and thighs
- About 17 percent believe their chest area needs work
- About half the respondents who had either had a cosmetic procedure or were planning one said boosting self-esteem was their motivator, making it the number one reason cited
- More than a third — 36 percent — said their interest in surgery was based on a desire to be more attractive
- Nearly a quarter — 22 percent — said their reason was to look younger
- Nearly 10 percent said they felt having plastic surgery was more socially acceptable than it’s been in the past
- About 5 percent said they would have surgery to boost career prospects
Not only has the number of procedures seen a rise domestically, but the high cost of plastic surgery has led to more UK residents going abroad to get less-expensive surgery, the Daily Mail reports.
