Plastic surgery for teens

To say I disliked my nose as a teenager would be an understatement. Both its size (too big) and its shape (hooked) made me feel as if I stood out. Though I sometimes fantasized about getting it "done," a nose job wasn't something I ever considered seriously. At the time, the plastic surgery boom was just beginning to gain steam and, for the most part, adolescents weren't on-board. Times have certainly changed.

The American Society of Plastic Surgeons estimates that more than 330,000 adolescents -- most of them female -- underwent cosmetic procedures in 2007. The most popular surgical procedures were nose jobs, breast augmentation, ear reshaping and liposuction.

Of course American teens want to undergo these procedures: They face tremendous pressure to be attractive, and they're constantly bombarded with images of beautiful men and women who are held up as the norm. "We've made a decision about what beauty looks like in this country, and everybody -- teens in particular -- wants to fit the mold," says Diana Zuckerman, president of the National Research Center for Women and Families, a nonprofit organization that works to improve the health of women and children.

But, in general, cosmetic surgery may not be appropriate for adolescents. After all, altering the way you look before you're even done developing physically seems almost ridiculous.

Many plastic surgeons argue that cosmetic procedures aren't just about improving appearances; they make the case that surgery can improve teenagers' self-esteem too. Because teens take every imperfection (real or perceived) seriously, physical differences, however minor, can influence what they think of themselves and how they behave. Teens can be tough on one another too, and a feature outside the perceived norm -- be it a large nose or a flat chest -- can be the source of teasing and ultimately self-imposed isolation. But no well-designed studies demonstrate that cosmetic surgery significantly changes teenagers' quality of life. "Although patients who have undergone a cosmetic procedure often do feel better about that particular body part, there's really no data to suggest that it improves their overall body image or self-esteem," Zuckerman says.