CAPE TOWN - The Covid-19 pandemic has transformed the way millions of people around the world work and go about their daily lives.
Lockdown regulations implemented worldwide in a bid to contain the spread of the coronavirus have seen millions of people having to spend the past few months in front of their laptops, working remotely.
For many people, looking at themselves during daily video conference calls has made them so much more aware of their appearance and flaws.
In a recent study, plastic surgeons in South Africa say there has been a surge in demand for their services during lockdown.
According to a report by media outlet Voice of America, lockdown-imposed isolation has caused a rush of people who are quietly changing their appearance.
Reports reveal that aesthetic surgeons in the US, Japan and elsewhere are noting the same trend, writes Voice of America.
Due to the pandemic, the reasons patients gave to go under the knife was that life is short and that they had always wanted to have some work done on their face or bodies. Another reason was that since they were working from home, it would give them enough time to recover.
According to reports, plastic surgeons are seeing a rise in patients coming in for treatments ranging from lip fillers, Botox and facelifts to nose jobs.
Health information website Cutica Health says that plastic surgery is becoming especially popular in countries such as Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya and Sudan.
The growing Nigerian market has seen an influx of surgeons from the US and Europe who are performing cosmetic procedures on the elite of the population.
Africa’s cosmetic desires seem to be in line with global trends.
Worldwide, breast surgery continues to be the most popular procedure, followed by liposuction, eyelid and nose surgery, and plastic surgery to the stomach, according to Cutica Health.
Most plastic surgery clients – more than 85% – are women and this is no different in Africa.
Among men, the most popular procedures are eyelid surgery, reduction of male breast tissue, nose jobs, hair transplants and liposuction.
– African News Agency (ANA); Editing by Yaron Blecher