More Teens Seek Plastic Surgery, Parents OK With Decision
MIAMI (CBS4)- Thousands of teenagers unsatisfied with their looks undergo plastic surgery each year, and many parents are OK with their decision. But how young is too young?
Krizia Nunez began begging her parents for a breast augmentation when she was just 17-years-old.
"For months and months I would tell my parents I want them done for my 18th birthday and they would say no you're going to grow and I said no I'm not." Nunez said.
But on her birthday Nunez's wish was granted.
"My parents were okay with it. Well my mom, my dad wasn't," she said.
Nunez, now 24, is part of a trend of teens opting for plastic surgery at younger and younger ages. In 2008 alone, nearly 300,000 teens underwent aesthetic plastic surgery.
"Teenagers are very conscience and very aware of the way they look," plastic surgeon Dr. Seth Thaller of the University of Miami said. "I think there's a popular perception that if you don't like the way you look its easily fixed.
Though it seems to be a prevalent trend, in 2009 only 3,000 breast augmentations were performed on women 18 and younger. That accounts for just .9 percent of procedures performed that year.
A year ago when Denise Rodriguez was just 17-years-old she has surgery on her nose, but it wasn't for looks.
"I had a deviated septum, and I couldn't breathe," Rodriguez said.
But how young is too young to go under the knife? Dr. Thaller said it depends on the patient.
"So you want to wait to do any of these procedures until all the growth and development is completed," Dr. Thaller said
Both Nunez and Rodriguez, despite choosing surgery for different reasons, believe the same thing when it comes to teens going under the knife.
"I think 18 is a good age," Nunez said.
"I think it was the right time to do it," Rodriguez said.
