China's latest fad: Plastic Surgery

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China's latest fad: Plastic Surgery

There's nothing new about someone wanting to change some aspect of their physical appearance in order to look more beautiful, but what is interesting is the rate at which it's taking place in China; a nation of 1.3 billion people were every edge makes a difference in the job market:Like a growing number of students in China, Pan Ou will spend her university vacation going under the knife in a plastic surgery procedure she hopes will boost her chances of getting a good job after graduation.

"I want to be more beautiful, to perfect myself," Pan, a student at one of China's most prestigious law schools, told Reuters in the waiting room of EverCare Xingfu hospital.

"My face is too big and flat, like all Asians. I would also like to make my nose higher," said the attractive 23-year-old.

The EverCare in Beijing is one of thousands of plastic surgery clinics mushrooming across China with promises to make patients more beautiful, more successful and more marriageable.

....Parents who grew up under Mao Zedong's austere communist rule, when plastic surgery was unimagined and feminine beauty frowned upon, now encourage their kids to go under the knife with the hope that a prettier face may give them an edge.

"It's an economic age of beauty," said Liu. "A good-looking girl earns 10 percent more than others."

EverCare performed over 1,000 operations last year. Around 95 percent of the patients were women and over 20 percent were aged under 25. Like cars and mobile phones, plastic surgery is no longer considered a luxury, Liu said.
"It has become a need for ordinary people," he said.

Government officials estimate that $2.4 billion is spent annually in China on plastic surgery procedures. They say about one million such operations take place every year.

Eye and nose modifications are the most common operations.

"These are the areas for that all-important first impression -- the place where people first look and where a lover's eyes gaze," Liu said.

Now school-age girls can get "double eyelids" for 2000 yuan ($250) -- a procedure favored by aspiring stars -- where a crease is added to the eyelids to make the eyes appear larger.

Bi Shumin, a prominent psychologist and writer on women's health, said the youth boom in plastic surgery reflected China's frantic modernization. The sheer pace of change has made first impressions paramount, she said.

"Unlike the past, (when) we had a lot of time to get to know each other. Now, we judge people and are judged within a very short period," she said.
For China's graduating students, cosmetic surgery offers a skin of protection in an increasingly brutal job market where women often come second.

While the nation's economy charges full-steam ahead, millions of university graduates are finding the jobs promised when they began work on their degrees simply don't exist.

This year, 4.13 million students are entering the workforce -- 22 percent more than in 2005. Many are reluctant or ill-qualified to work in the heavy industries fueling China's growth and face a service industry too small to absorb them.

With media reports of this year's graduates taking jobs as cleaners and domestic helpers for rich families, it's no wonder students and their parents are seeking an edge in looks, said Yang Chun, a 32-year-old TV anchor.

Sad, but not surprising. China is a nation that has always placed a high value on beauty, it's just unfortunate that it's come to this.