The question that plagues me is whether we should call the countries with most plastic surgery per capita in the world vain or self conscious.
The opinion of the masses on plastic surgery is quiet dispersed. Some defend themselves saying that if they have the resources, why shouldn’t they make themselves look as young and beautiful as possible? While others take a stronger, more steadfast outlook towards the situation. They believe that we should preserve what nature has granted us, maintain our uniqueness and let nature take its due course. Their point of view is: what use is beauty if it’s not natural? I admit that I lean more towards the latter opinion, but then I can’t help but wonder, maybe that is just so because I think a cosmetic procedure is not worth the noticable hole it will leave on my pocket. Maybe if I had the means necessary for such surgeries, I would give in to temptation. Due to this contemplation, I’m not one to judge plastic surgery enthusiasts, though I definitely don’t condone them either.
I mean in a world full of people obsessed with appearances; in a world where cosmetic products are too many to remember; in a world where you are judged by the selfies you post on Instagram; in a world where YouTube is teeming with beauty gurus and in a world where Alicia Keys is bashed for not wearing makeup, I can certainly understand the pull of plastic surgery even if I don’t agree with it. Everyone strives for Angelina Jolie’s pouty lips and Ryan Gosling’s perfect nose. So there is no doubt at all why worldwide plastic surgery rates are slowly increasing. According to statistics released by the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ISAPS), the total procedures performed in the world in 2016 amounted to 23,626,909 while the corresponding number in 2015 was 21,696,671.
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With the industry booming, we decided to identify the top plastic surgery countries 2016, which we did, using data released by ISAPS. It ranks countries based on the total number of cosmetic procedures performed by their citizens. However, since we were more interested in cosmetic surgery per capita, we took population statistics from the United Nations website and divided the total procedures over the population of the country to come up with the number of cosmetic procedures per 100,000 citizens. Please note that we took population figures of 2016 and not 2017, even though they were available. This was to match them better with the ISAPS statistics. Moreover, we used the medium variant population estimates for our calculations.
Surprisingly, the ranking changed quite a lot when converted from absolute numbers to per capita figures. It was also interesting to note how it differed from our previous list of countries with the highest plastic surgery rates in the world. South Korea, which is widely considered the plastic surgery capital of the world and was number one on our previous list, is nowhere to be seen in the 2016 statistics! This discovery shocked me more than I can say and is a mystery I have not been able to solve. Maybe the country is over its obsession with cosmetic surgery, though that seems pretty unbelievable once you read our piece on the most popular plastic surgeries in South Korea.
The country with the most plastic surgery 2016 (in absolute terms) has remained the same as in 2015, that is the United States of America. People like Cindy Jackson, who according to ABC News happens to be the person with the most plastic surgery in the world with record procedures of 52, will certainly find that fact easy to believe. In fact, even if we rewind a few years and ask ourselves: what country had the most plastic surgery in 2013? Still: USA. The nation is nothing if not consistent. Furthermore, according to the 10 Most Common Plastic Surgery Procedures in America, Botox remains the favorite of the nation. Breast procedures aren’t so far behind either, considering that the US is one of the best and cheapest countries for breast implants and augmentation.
The US isn’t number one on our list of countries with the most plastic surgery per capita though, whatever you may be thinking. So let’s get on with it and see who took the coveted first spot. Though let me warn you, some of the entries might definitely surprise you.
