South Korea is a hot spot for facial reconstructing procedures. It is a prevalent practice and, thus, is not regarded as taboo or stigmatized, and it is boldly discussed between parents and children or even between spouses and friends. Many South Koreans treat themselves by altering their looks to feel good and gain more confidence.
In the modern-day, cosmetic surgeries are gifted as birthday or graduation gifts. South Korea holds the record for the most cosmetic surgeries carried out, with over 980,000 operations, even in the year 2014 alone. That was about seven decades ago!
Nose job or rhinoplasty, double-eyelid or blepharoplasty surgery, skin whitening, ears, eye bag procedures, and the famous Korean V-shape or jawline surgery are the most popular surgeries undertaken.
Before and After Pictures
According to the ID hospital South Korea, the cost of these surgeries is $4500 for rhinoplasty, $3500 for blepharoplasty, $60 for a session of skin whitening injection, and $14,000 to $19,000 for a jawline surgery. Due to its reasonable cost, many people travel to South Korea to get their faces done.
Additionally, South Korea is flooded with sophisticated technologies and extraordinarily gifted and experienced cosmetic surgeons. Here is a gist of the beauty standard many South Koreans swear on:
Koreans and their obsession with cosmetic surgery
Millions of Korean women wish to look like a doll. Dolls have huge eyes with small pointy noses, crystal clear white skin, and red-pinkish fuller lips. These descriptions fall under the beauty standard for the South Koreans.
Moreover, Koreans are obsessed with cosmetic procedures because their value is measured based on how they look. This is why many K-pop celebrities undergo multiple procedures to stay on top of the game.
Rhinoplasty: A booming business in South Korea
The K-pop culture is magnanimous, and it has not only inspired people within the domestic country but globally.
It is undeniably true that every single Korean celebrity is perfection beyond imagination. These pictures can be a result of cosmetic surgery or simply good filters. And people who idolize them want to emulate them even to the extent of spending millions of dollars just to look like them. Thus, came about the popularity of nose job, also known as rhinoplasty.
These celebrities are very vocal with their surgical procedures. Jessica is a perfect example to take. She is a Korean actress, dancer, and singer. Previously, she had spoken out on a TV show that she had undergone rhinoplasty, blepharoplasty, and breast augmentation.
Celebrity or non-celebrity, a nose job is easily accessible for every Korean woman. The majority of Koreans are born with short noses, and the most common surgery they opt for is the quick nose surgery point, whereby the tip is elongated using cartilage.
Silicone implants are also used to give the nose a decent length. If necessary, cartilage of the ear is also used to create a doll-like nose tip. After surgery, the person will have a slightly raised nose tip, and the nasal will ideally be in sync with the size of the chin. This type of nose is the most desired and sought-after in South Korea.
Korean Eyelift
This is a surgical procedure to counter droopy eyes. This procedure also involves creating double eyelids for those people with mono eyelids to give them a good eye lift.
Like all other Asians, South Koreans have natural mono eyelids, which are relatively smaller, and the gaps between the eyes are wider. Since small eyes do not fall under the Korean beauty standard, double eyelid surgery is the second most popular surgery in South Korea.
This surgery will make the eyes bigger by creating an artificial crease that looks like a double eyelid. After the surgery, the person will have an almost almond-shaped eye, appearing relatively bigger, giving the entire face an attractive disposition.
Korean jawline (V-shape) surgery
Jawline surgery is a surgical procedure to slim down the lower part of the face and create an almost V-like structure. Since the Korean culture associates the V-shaped face with beauty, according to healthline.com, this procedure is done on one out of every five Korean women, which is, needless to say, the highest ratio globally.
After the surgery, the person will have a narrower jaw and chin bone, and the cheekbone will look more pronounced and contoured. The face will soon take a more feminine shape with time as the swelling decreases, and that is the desired result.
There are many videos on YouTube that you can refer to understand the cost, preparation procedures, and post-care. BeautywithEmilyFox is a classic example, and Emily made a testimonial content about her whole jawline surgery experience in Korea.
Breast augmentation
In South Korea, the VIP International cosmetic Surgery Center is one of the most reputed centers which carries out different facial and body modification procedures. Since South Koreans usually are very lean, many women choose to undergo breast augmentation.
Pulsenews.com maintains that South Korean women of the 21st century are getting bustier. As per the local undergarment makers, today’s highest-selling bra size is the c or bigger cup size. However, despite the increased breast augmentation procedures in South Korea, the A cup size still accounts for the highest percentage.
Final Thoughts
In 2018, Al Jazeera maintained that South Korea’s facial reconstruction business is booming, with a net worth of $5billion. Years later, many experts opined that there are a growing demand for ”non-evasive” surgeries over high-risk surgeries, and South Korea seems to be fulfilling that demand more than any other country.
Park Sang-Hyeon, the managing director at the Korean Association of cosmetic Surgeons, stated that patients in South Korea could easily access non-evasive surgeries since they are relatively cheaper. These non-evasive surgeries are a growing trend among those in their 20s and 30s.
Korean cosmetic surgeries always aim at achieving a very natural look. This is the reason why it is hard to tell if someone has undergone any procedures at all.
Also, due to the surgeons’ results, many tourists come to the country to get their procedures done. The facial reconstructive programs in South Korea are more efficient in comparison to other developed countries.
There are many before and after images on the internet, you can refer to if you are also looking to get some works done. Besides the surgical procedures, there are sophisticated techniques, beauty regimes, diets and therapies in South Korea to achieve a glass skin result.
This is said keeping in mind that South Koreans are relatively very fair with baby-like skin. It can be their genes or their food habits. So, what is your take on the Korean beauty standard? Would you go the extreme to look like one of them?