ideals of beauty body modification

8/8/2019 Ideals of Beauty Body Modification

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³Ugly´

Common first name in Ancient Greece,parts of sub-Saharan Africa

Idea: give children bad names so demonswon¶t find them

Other favorites: ³Disagreeable,´ ³Crippled´



H istorical Ideals of BeautyH istorical Ideals of Beauty

Chinese foot binding

± pain, osteoporosis, falls/imbalance ± Surgery to reshape women¶s feet for

stiletto heels increasingly popular Ancient Greek newborn female babywrapping




Ancient Roman women colored their lipswith red cinnabar stone, a type of mercuryore, lined their faces with white lead, androuged their cheeks with red leadAncient Egyptians/Roman/Persians:antimony for conjunctival sparkle

Rome to medieval Europe: palenesspreferred




Elizabethan hair plucking, ceruseElizabethan hair plucking, cerusemakeupmakeup

Court of Louis XVI: blue veins drawn onCourt of Louis XVI: blue veins drawn onneck and shoulders to emphasize nobleneck and shoulders to emphasize noblebloodblood16th & 17th century: belladona eye16th & 17th century: belladona eyedropsdrops




18 th Century: vermillion makeup (sulfur and mercury)

14th - 19th century: corsetting(whalebone and steel) ± precursor tothe girdle

± Making a comeback at both high- and low-end retailers (takes up to 30 minutes tolace up; requires an extra set of hands)




Unibrow: ± Sign of criminal tendencies in

Victorian England ± Mark of beauty in contemporary IranBreast implants (since 1903 - Charles

Miller, MD) ± First silicone breast enlargement

1962



Contemporary Ideals of BeautyContemporary Ideals of Beauty

³Better Baby Contests´ ± EugenicMovement / Social Darwinism

Tapeworms (Maria Callas)

Rib removal (Cher?)



Contemporary Ideals of BeautyContemporary Ideals of Beauty

Botox injectionsPlastic surgery

Abusive subjugation of womenthrough body modification ± femalegenital mutilation ± Cultural components



Ideals of BeautyIdeals of Beauty

Brass neck rings (Paduang people of Brass neck rings (Paduang people of Burma)Burma)

Lip and earlobe expanders (certainAfrican tribes)

Tattoos, body piercings, wingsTattoos, body piercings, wings



Ideals of Ideals of BeautyBeauty

Wonderbra, Brava Bra ($2500, suctiondevice worn overnight for 10 weeks,promises 1 cup increase (actualincrease ½ cup size), can causebroken blood vessels, skin rash,discomfort)

Wonderbum pantyhose (DuPontLycra) ± promises a ³perfectly peachy,pert bottom´Music industry depictions of beauty



Ideals of Beauty

Ancient Greeks ± symmetry ± Remains true ± Familiarity, personality traits also

important

Evolutionary adaptation for survival of

human species ± Size, muscle power, pathogen-free status,fertility



The Perks of Beauty

The good-looking are more likely to getmarried, be hired, get paid more, andbe promoted sooner H eight is associated with income andleadership positionsStrangers are more likely to assistgood-looking people in distress



The Perks of Beauty

The pretty/handsome are less likely tobe reported, caught, accused, or punished for a minor or major crimeRole of ageism (more important for women)The responsibility: ± Attractiveness is recognized as a special

gift, and its misuse is not tolerated



CosmeticsCosmetics

2004 spending = $12 billion ± 33% more than the amount needed each

year (in addition to current expenditures)to provide water and sanitation for allpeople in developing nations

± Slightly more than the amount neededeach year (in addition to current

expenditures) to provide reporductivehealthcare for all women in developingcountries



CosmeticsCosmetics

Average American adult uses 9personal care products/day (with 126

unique chemical ingredients) ±89% of the over 10,500 ingredients

used in personal care products

never tested for toxicity ±Little FDA oversight



CosmeticsCosmetics

Unusual ingredients include: ± Cow colostrum

± Gold ± Foreskin ± Placenta ± Fetal cells



Cosmetics and Hair Coloring

Women devote average of 19minutes per day to treating and

altering their faces55% of American women between 13and 70 color their hair

±1/8 American men between 16 and60



Tanning

The skin¶s response to ultraviolet lightinjury

No such thing as a ³safe tan´95% of Americans understand thatsunburns are dangerous, but 81% stillthink they look better with a tan.



Artificial Tanning

47% of college students use a tanning lampeach year (females more than males)39% have never used a tanning lampMore than 90% of users are aware thatpremature aging and skin cancer arepossible complications of tanning lamp use

WHO

: tanning beds cause cancer



Tanning

Tanning as a substance abuse-likedisorder

Tanning produces endorphinsMost countries do not limit access of youths to tanning parlors

SPF of at least 15 should be worn whenoutdoors (and re-applied frequently)



Artificial Tanning

Many lotions and creams available

Burgeoning industry

³Natural´ does not necessarily mean

safe



Tattooing

Tattoo from Tahitian word ³tatau´ (³tomark´)

Reached apogee among MaoriPopularized in West by sailorsreturning from Polynesia



Tattooing

Aesthetic choiceInitiation rite

Time-saving way for disabled to overcomedifficulties of applying makeupAdjuvant to reconstructive surgery

(particularly face and breast, to simulatenatural pigmentation)



Tattooing

30 million Americans have tattoosAncient practice: Maori tribesmen,

Thracian women of 5 th CenturyGreeceTattooing still illegal in South Carolinaand Oklahoma



TattooingTattooing

More than 50 different pigments andshades employed

± None approved for skin injection

± Some industrial grade printer¶s ink or automobile paint



The FringesThe Fringes

Anal bleaching ± Initially porn stars and sex workers

± Now available to general public for $75/treatment ± Can cause eczema

Money: Jim Nelson auctioned off hishead on eBay for a corporate logotattoo in 2003



Risks of TattooingRisks of Tattooing

Tattooing associated with riskybehaviors in adolescentsInfection ± e.g., hepatitis B, C, and H IV ± Am Assn Blood Banks requires one-year

wait between getting tattoo and donatingblood

Removal problemsAllergic reactions



Risks of TattooingRisks of Tattooing

GranulomasKeloid formation

MRI complicationsSwellings/burnsImage quality suffers (particularly with

permanent mascara)



The Most Common Problem:The Most Common Problem:DissatisfactionDissatisfaction

17% of those tattooed later regret it ± Chief reason = the person¶s name in the tattoo

Practitioners¶ skill levels vary widely

Fading with time

Blurring when injections too deep



The Most Common Problem:The Most Common Problem:DissatisfactionDissatisfaction

H uman body changes with time

Styles come and go

With facial cosmetic surgery,

appearance of tattoos and permanentmakeup may become distorted



Tattoo Removal TechniquesTattoo Removal Techniques

Laser treatmentsDermabrasion

SalabrasionScarificationSurgical Removal

Camouflaging



Temporary TattoosTemporary TattoosFade after several days

Allergic reactions

FDA alert re risks with foreign-madeproducts

Freedom-2 Ink: Biodegradable dye capsules ± when zapped by laser, dyes absorbed bybody and tattoo disappears



Risks of H enna TattoosRisks of H enna Tattoos

H enna products risky ± H enna approved for use as a hair dye, not

for injection into the skin ± Produces a reddish-brown tint, raising

questions about what ingredients areadded to produce the varieties of colors

labeled as henna (e.g., ³black henna,´³blue henna´



BotoxBotox

Botulinum toxin: ± Cause of botulism ± potential biowarfare/bioterror agent

Medical Uses: blepharospasm, spasmodictorticollis, migraines, back spasms, chronicpain, axillary hyperhidrosis, wrinkles due tonormal agingUnlikely to work on sun- or smoking-inducedwrinkles



BotoxBotox

Manufacturer = Allergan ± Allergan also markets Latisse

(bimatoprost, the same ingredient inthe glaucoma treatment Lumigan) for topical ³treatment´ of ³hypertrichosisof the eyelashes´

± Myobloc (Solstice Neurosciences ±not yet FDA-approved)



B otox

2.5 million procedures in 2008 (costing$1.1 billion)

Large direct-to-consumer ad campaign ± O lympians Mark Spitz, Nadia Comanici

involved

$80/dose + physician¶s fee ($443 avg.)



BotoxBotox

Most users white, age 35-5012% are menIn-home Botox parties; Botoxscams

H ollywood actors



BotoxBotoxRetreatments required q 3-4 monthsSide effects: muscle weakness, masklikefacies, drooling, slurred speech, aspiration,

dysphagia, dysnpnea, rare allergic reactions;may spread via neurons back to spinal cordor even CNS ± 87 hospitalizations, 16 deaths reported

1997-2006 ± FDA boxed warning 2009



Rivals to B otox

Collagen injections (from cows,possible allergic responses)

Perlane (³natural´ collagen alternativefrom human tissue)Fat injections

Face lift/eyelid surgery



Dermal Fillers

Alternative to botoxCow collagen, liquid silicone, plastic

microbeads, synthetic bone andground-up human cadaver skin(association with for-profit tissuebanks)



Dermal Fillers

$700-$900 per treatment (lasts a fewmonths) ± Compare with $4000-$6000 for a facelift,

which lasts 10-15 yrs before requiringtouch-ups

Side effects ± Include renal failure



Conclusions

Ideals of beauty: some relativelyconstant, others change

Multiple methods of bodymodification: some dangerous,even abusive



Covered in Other Slide Shows

Cosmetic surgeryFemale genital cutting

B ody weight and the obesityepidemic

Ethical and policy issues



References

Donohoe MT. B eauty and body modification.Medscape Ob/Gyn and Women¶s Health2006;11(1): posted 4/19/06. Available at

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/529442Donohoe MT. Cosmetic surgery past, present,and future: scope, ethics and policy. MedscapeOb/Gyn and Women¶s Health 2006;11(2):posted 8/28/06. Available athttp://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/542448



Re Tanning

See slide show by Anuru and Salmon onrisks and regulations related to indoor tanning at http://phsj.org/?page_id=10



Contact Information

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http://www.phsj.org

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