A sharp rise in cosmetic surgery is worrying doctors in Iran, with a predominantly female clientele citing insecurities fueled by social media and the lure of aesthetic beauty.
“The authentic Iranian face is being distorted through invasive procedures,” said Babak Nikumaram, president of the Iranian Society of Plastic and Aesthetic Surgeons (Isaps). Financial Times’ Bita Ghaffari in Tehran. “Incongruous Western Beauty Standards Forced on Iranians”.
In the world ranking of cosmetic proceduresthe Islamic Republic jumped from 18th in 2016 to 12th in 2022. About 320,000 surgical and non-surgical procedures were performed in 2022, Isaps said, with rhinoplasty or rhinoplasty the most common.
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But the figures are “the tip of the iceberg,” Nikumaram said, because doctors don’t have to submit official records. The actual number of procedures would likely put the country in the top five globally, he said.
“Nose Job Capital of the World”
Since the Islamic Revolution in 1979, Iran has been one of the leading cosmetic surgery centers in the world.
In 2013, it had the highest rate of nose jobs in the world, according to The guardian, with most women going to plastic surgeons every year to reduce the size of their noses and “tip them up”. Tehran boasted more rhinoplasty procedures per capita than even LA, an ITV report found in 2016.
Strict dress codes for women are even fueling the industry, one of the country’s top plastic surgeons has said NBC News in 2016. An exposed face becomes more important when women are required to cover hair and body, she said.
But the repressive, brutal regime pushed back. In 2018, Iran’s parliament threatened to imprison and flog citizens who opt for “un-Islamic” cosmetic procedures. The country had been “rocked by a series of horror stories about surgeries gone wrong”, The Telegraph mentionted.
“Rapid Industry Growth”
The procedures “once largely confined to the wealthy and middle-aged” have now “become mainstream”, the FT reported. “The rapid growth of the industry, rampant advertising and the growing number of unqualified professionals have alarmed senior plastic surgeons.”
Many Iranians are “so fixated” on rhinoplasty that the “Persian ‘nose job'” has entered the surgical lexicon, he said. Fair Observer. “Although Iran is ruled by puritanical mullahs who do not allow women to uncover even their hair, Iran’s cult of beauty continues,” said Atul Singh, editor-in-chief. The “ideal of Aryan beauty” remains strong.
Beauty bloggers are extremely popular. Some women told the FT that social media and the normalization of perfection had made them feel insecure. Beauty also carries social and economic cachet. One woman said that attractive women “get approached with better marriage proposals and get better jobs.”
Iran has also emerged as a “leading hub for medical tourism,” he said Tehran Times. People are attracted by weak regulation, low cost and perceived high expertise.
In 2022, 8.5 percent of cosmetic surgery clients came from outside Iran, Isaps said: about 1.2 million people from 164 countries, an official told the newspaper.
But the dangers of the industry are not limited to Iranian citizens. In 2021, British hairdresser Louise Smith died after complications from cosmetic surgery in Iran. Daily Mail. Her family said they were “in the dark” about the circumstances.
