As technology improves, plastic surgery is getting cheaper, safer, better, and more popular around the world. Nowhere is it catching on faster than in South Korea, where one in five women in Seoul have had some type of procedure, according to a 2009 survey by Trend Monitor.
It has become so common in South Korea that most of the stigma regarding surgery has dropped away, and celebrities and beauty queens openly discuss treatment. Americans should take a good look at what could be a glimpse into the future.
Everyone in Korea wants the same look: Light skin, tiny nose, wide eyes with double lids, and a small face with a V-shaped chin. Koreans get plastic surgery to achieve this idealized look more than any other nation. It's estimated that one in five women in Seoul has had some type of plastic surgery.
Plastic surgery has become so normalized that everyone talks about it. Instead of where did you get your designer handbag, people might ask you where you got your chin or your nose.
Eyelid surgery to create a double lid and nose jobs to lengthen and thin the nose are the most popular surgeries. These procedures are so common, they're called "the basics."
They may seem to conform to Western standards of beauty, but surgeons and patients deny this claim. "There's a difference between western double eyelids and Korean double eyelids," explains the creator of the popular Korean Plastic Surgery . Plastic surgery has become so popular that it's not uncommon for Korean high school girls to go under the knife. In fact, it's believed that the earlier you do it, the more "natural" it looks as you grow into your features.
Some parents even encourage their children to get plastic surgery. "Everyone is getting prettier and prettier and some parents don't want their child to be the 'ugly' one," one Korean woman told VICE last year. Getting your eyes done might even be a graduation present.
Of course all plastic surgery comes with risks, including permanent facial numbness or even paralysis. But to many women, that's just the price they pay to look beautiful.
It's widely accepted in Korea that gorgeous women will do better in life: They'll find a husband, get the job they desire, and have people treat them better.
South Korean men are also targeted by clinics, with ads saying they will find a wife and get hired if they look more handsome. Due to an increase in popularity, there are now male-only clinics like Man & Nature in Gangnam.
Korea has gained a reputation as a plastic surgery mecca, where South Korean doctors are all highly trained and have access to the latest technology. There's even a law that allows other doctors to switch into the plastic surgery field
reference : http://www.businessinsider.com/korea-is-obsessed-with-plastic-surgery-2013-5?op=1