34% OF AMERICAN WOMEN WOULD CONSIDER
COSMETIC SURGERY, NOW OR IN FUTURE
NEW YORK, NY (February 11, 2002)-A new survey (February 2002) by the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) shows that 34% of American women would consider having cosmetic surgery, either now or in the future. According to ASAPS, this is a 3% increase compared to the same survey conducted in February 2001. The annual consumer attitudes survey of 1000 American households was commissioned by ASAPS and conducted by the independent research firm Market Facts.
Seventy-nine percent (79%) of all women surveyed said they would not be embarrassed if people outside their immediate family and close friends knew they had undergone cosmetic surgery.
Nineteen percent (19%) of men said they would consider cosmetic surgery; this figure is down 1% from 2001. However, 79% of men (the same percentage as women) said they would not be embarrassed if others beyond family and friends knew they had cosmetic surgery.
"People today generally are not ashamed to admit that they care about their appearance, and they enjoy having the freedom to make choices about how they want to look," says Newport Beach plastic surgeon Malcolm Paul, MD, president of the 1900-member American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery.
According to the ASAPS survey, the majority of Americans (55%) approve of cosmetic surgery, with 57% of women and 53% of men saying they approve. The most likely to approve of cosmetic surgery (60%) are Baby Boomers ages 45-54, and the least likely to approve (48%) are 18-24 year olds. The younger age group is, by far, the most likely (32%) to want their cosmetic surgery kept confidential, while the 65-and-over group is the least likely (13%) to be embarrassed about having cosmetic surgery.
Most survey respondents (78%) said their attitude toward cosmetic surgery has not changed in the last 5 years. Only 7% have a less favorable attitude, while 15% said they have a more favorable attitude.