The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) just released new data that shows Americans were fully embracing plastic surgery in 2016, with 17.1 million surgical and minimally invasive cosmetic procedures performed in the U.S. Although a more “natural look” seems to be the trend, advances in plastic surgery have made it possible to go under the knife and not come out looking like someone else or a “done” version of yourself.
Popular trends last year, according to the research, were facelifts and fat transfer, a procedure that takes fat from one area of the body where there is excess and moves it to an area that needs more volume, often the breasts.
The “Top 5 Cosmetic Surgical Procedures” (1.8 million were performed in 2016) include breast augmentation at number one, followed by liposuction, nose reshaping, eyelid surgery and facelifts. Another surprising stat that ASPS included in its data for the first time: Labiaplasty (rejuvenation of the labia by lifting and/or injecting fat or filler into the area) increased by 39 percent last year, with more than 12,000 procedures.
President of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, Dr. Debra Johnson, attributes the new plastic surgery trends to our current cultural landscape, suggesting that everything from selfies to social media have made patients more aware about their overall appearance and what they would like to improve.