By Chris Diggins
The Federal Drug Association''s recent decision to continue a ban on silicon breast implants, Thursday, Jan. 8, has sparked a new interest on campus about the safety and desirability of the surgery.
'I''m kind of torn on the issue,' said Cynthia Possie'', 23, a chemical engineering major from Alberta, Canada. 'I feel it''s sad that women feel the need to enhance themselves like that and they think that men are just looking for physical things. However, so many girls have such low self-esteem. I think whatever it takes to improve that is OK.'
For a variety of reasons, thousands of women choose to go through breast augmentation surgery each year. According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, 249,641 women had the procedure in 2002 at an average cost of $3,301 per surgery. The number of women receiving breast implants increased a staggering 147 percent from 1997.
The numbers of women receiving the surgery here in Utah County isn''t available, but may be more widespread then most people think.
'When I started here it shocked me exactly how many we did,' said Ben Hodges, a BYU graduate and an office manager for a local plastic surgeon. 'Even in Utah County the numbers are really high.'
These women are having the surgery despite the significant risks attached. These risks include increased possibility of autoimmune disease, local complications such as decreased breast sensitivity and the implants making a 'sloshing sound', the implants interfering with the detection of breast cancer, and a rupture or breakage of the implants themselves according to a report done by the National Center for Policy Research for Women and Families. Recent studies done by the FDA suggest most women experience at least one broken implant within 15 years.
Still, women are willing to look past the risk in order to enjoy the benefits that come with the surgery. In addition to a larger bust line, information has shown that patients receive a psychological boost as a result of the procedure. The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery also claims that there is no scientific evidence that breast augmentation increases the risk of cancer or has a negative effect on pregnancy or a mother''s ability to breastfeed.
Ami Peterson 19, a social work major from Landsdale, Pa., recently met with a friend from home who had the surgery.
'I didn''t think there was anything wrong with (the surgery) because she was really self-conscious and it helped her deal with that,' she said.
Currently, all women who have breast augmentation surgery receive saline implants, which consist of a silicone shell filled with sterile salt water. Implants filled with silicon were banned in 1992 because of the health risks associated with them. Last week, the FDA upheld the ban despite Inamed Corp.''s attempt to bring a safer silicon implant back on the market.
After weighing the risks and benefits involved, women who still feel that they want the surgery in order to attract more guys might want to reconsider.
'No quality guy I know wants a girl to do that to herself,' said Lish Harris, 21, a sociology major from Petaluma, Calif. 'The best look a girl can have is a natural look.'