Nip, tuck and trim

IT’S expensive, painful and can be dangerous, but for thousands of Irish people cosmetic surgery helps them achieve their dream bodies. The most popular procedure is breast augmentation, but many women and men are having ‘tummy tucks’.

Ex-Atomic Kitten singer Kerry Katona has reputedly undergone several tucks as her weight fluctuated. But it is not a procedure to be taken lightly. Abdominoplasty involves major surgery, four weeks’ recovery and can cause complications and death (American rapper Kanye West’s mother Donda died after a tummy tuck aged 58, as did English mother Lorraine Batt aged 36.)

With images of perfect celeb bodies — often achieved at a high cost — splashed across our screens and in magazines, it is hardly surprising that the public is following suit. It is estimated that e40m is spent on cosmetic surgery in Ireland every year.