Photo filters kill the facelift as female surgery figures almost halve

hoto filters are killing the facelift as more women opt for digital facial enhancements as plastic surgery figures almost halve.

Latest figures reveal women are now favouring plastic surgery on their bodies which cannot be doctored by photo filters rather than their faces, the Daily Telegraph reports.

Last year the number of female facelifts declined by 44 per cent, according to the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS).

Consultant plastic surgeon and former BAAPS President Rajiv Grover, who compiled the report, blames photo filters.

"Millennials are expected to take as many as 25,000 selfies in their lifetime and more than half of women admit to enhancing every photo they ever post," he said.

"The advent of myriad filters in social media platforms allows for the ubiquitous enhancing and facial feminising of 'selfies'. However there are fewer options to reach online 'fitspiration' when it comes to body goals.

"It is possible that fashion may also play a part; for example the growing trend of activewear such as yoga pants and Lycra leggings being worn in everyday life; perhaps demanding a more toned shape.

"Both of these factors may potentially be the reasons why women's focus for cosmetic surgery in 2017 has shifted from their face to their body in order to address the stubborn areas that neither diet, exercise, nor filters can reach."

For men eyelid and brow lift surgery increased by more than 25 per cent and facelifts were up by 16 per cent on the previous year.

But procedures such as liposuction were down 20 per cent and tummy tucks have dropped by 12 per cent.

Mr Grover added: "For men, the media's adoption and celebration of the more natural looking 'dad bod' is possibly a driver in this interesting trend, shifting the focus to the face rather than the body, in contrast to recent years - a shift that has lessened the pressure to sport a sculpted figure and instead, accept a bit of roundness or softness.

"Society unfortunately has a history of being more forgiving towards men's physiques than women's."

Overall plastic surgery procedures have declined by eight per cent with just 28,315 cosmetic surgical procedures in 2017.

BAAPS president and consultant plastic surgeon Simon Withey said: "The 2017 BAAPS audit offers valuable new insights into the extent that Britons online personas may be driving offline behaviours. The slight downwards shift in surgical procedures overall hopefully continues to demonstrate that at the very least, patients are realising that cosmetic surgery is not a 'quick fix' but a serious commitment.

"Although there may be some new non-surgical options for cosmetic treatments, it is important to remember that 'non-surgical' does not mean 'non-medical', and patients should be wary of anything touted which seems too good, or too cheap, to be true. The climate of lax regulation has yet to be addressed in a satisfactory manner to protect the public."