More and more people are turning to cosmetic surgery to remove saggy skin as a result of the sky-rocketing popularity of weight-loss drugs like Wegovy.
In America, after Wegovy and Ozempic came on the market to help people lose weight, the number of prescriptions for these drugs surged.
However, a side effect of rapid weight loss can be saggy skin, with many people now opting to go under the knife to have it removed. Dramatic weight loss can also leave people with a gaunt face, leading to them get filler in their cheeks to correct it.
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And with social media influencers now sporting ‘skinnier’ looks, cosmetic surgeons have warned of the dangers of chasing trends in plastic surgery.
Plastic surgeon Dr William Koenig, who is based in New York, said the rise in tummy tucks and fillers goes “hand in hand” with the growing popularity of the drug semaglutide.
He said: “Being skinny is more attainable with these medications. People are looking at themselves and deciding that they want to be skinnier.”
“The influencers, they influence. They definitely seem [to now have] more angular faces, less chest and a smaller body.”
Dr Gary Linkov, who runs a practice in New York, said he was concerned about the ‘cyclical’ trend of using a drug like Wegovy then needing surgery to correct issues like saggy skin.
He said: “It’s just like it’s one thing to have a pair of pants that you want to change, versus your actual body. I think the body is as much more resistant in a way to change, and the changes, especially surgical changes, they all have their own risks.”
Dr Jonathan Kaplan, from Pacific Heights Plastic Surgery in California, said that most of the people they see who have taken semaglutide are older women, as they have less collagen in their skin compared to younger women.
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He said: “We’re definitely seeing an uptick, there’s no doubt about that. Mostly people interested in a tummy tuck.”
Semaglutide was initially developed to treat type 2 diabetes but after it was found to help people shed the pounds, it was re-branded and promoted as just a weight-loss drug.
Trials showed that when used alongside an exercise programme and diet plan, Wegovy could help someone lose 15% of their body weight over 68 weeks. Such was its popularity, the drug became difficult to get hold of during 2022, with supply issues compounding the situation.
Figures from America’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that around 70% of the population is overweight and 40% of people are obese.
