FACES ARE NEW FAT-FREE ZONE

Deccan Chronicle, 06/03/2010, Hyderabad

Fat free is the zeitgeist in everything and now, after nipped buttocks and tummy tucks, chubby cheeks are the latest no-no.

by, Correspondent

Fat-free faces are the new fad, say city experts who point out that the demand for facial liposuction is rising.

It is no longer just a hot figure that youngsters hanker after. Now, along with the svelte body, they also want an attractive face like Illeana or Kareena Kapoor.

Hyderabad is opting for cosmetic procedures to get rid of double chins and chubby cheeks. These procedures are easily available and cost an affordable Rs 35,000, which has sent many city people looking for the perfect face.

Dr Debraj Shome, cosmetic surgeon at Apollo Hospital, says, “A 21-year-old girl came to me, wanting dimples and a thinner face. She had a round face that she was not too happy about,” he says.

A thin face is the latest fad and both men and women want it, say experts. Dr Venkat Thota, cosmetic surgeon at Kamineni Hospital, says, “On an average, out of the 10 people who come for liposuction, at least three would also want a facial liposuction to be performed,” he says.

Facial liposuction has no age limit. Everybody from a fresh 20-year-old to a 50-year-old, is making a bee-line for it. Normally a safe procedure, there can be problems too. “The human face has a lot of nerves. If such procedures are not handled with care it can damage a nerve and ruin a person’s control over facial muscles,” says cosmetic surgeon Dr Venkat Ramana.

Dr Shome agrees. “I recently had a case where a young man lost control over one side of his face since the doctor had knocked off a nerve during such a procedure. He now has a lopsided smile and can’t help but drool,” he says.