Body of evidence... majority of young women want to have plastic surgery

More than seven in 10 young women want to have plastic surgery and almost half are planning to go under the knife in the near future, a survey has found.

The poll of more than 1,000 women aged between 18 and 30 found that 61 per cent think they have a right to cosmetic procedures if they have insecurities about the way they look. Some 72 per cent said they want to have cosmetic surgery and 49 per cent are planning to have work done at some point in the near future.

More than a third (35 per cent) of readers surveyed by More! magazine thought that cosmetic surgery should be more readily available for free on the NHS.

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More than half of women questioned (57 per cent) said they wanted to have cosmetic surgery because they were unhappy with the way they look. More than one third (35 per cent) said they would have an operation to make themselves more confident.

Most women also said they did not feel it was something they would feel ashamed of. Only 31 per cent of respondents said they would keep it a secret if they had surgery.

Almost four out of five women (79 per cent) said they would be supportive of their boyfriend or husband if he wanted to have cosmetic surgery.

More! editor Chantelle Horton said: “The results show a worrying trend towards young women becoming obsessed with creating the “perfect” body image. It is clear that young women see surgery as a normal, acceptable and desirable way to correct their perceived imperfections and they genuinely believe this would make them happier.

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“These findings show that celebrities like Katie Price, Heidi Montag and Chloe Sims, who have all spoken openly about going under the knife, have normalised surgery and made it seem a safe and aspirational thing to do.

The most sought-after procedures were breast enhancements (36 per cent) followed by liposuction (34 per cent), nose jobs (14 per cent), breast reductions (six per cent), tummy tucks (six per cent) and gastric bands (four per cent).

American reality TV star Kim Kardashian was chosen as the celebrity the magazine’s readers would go under the knife to look like, followed by Cheryl Cole, Beyonce and Gossip Girl star Blake Lively.