1 00:00:02,480 --> 00:00:05,200 Speaker 1: I guess what, well, what's that mango? So, have you 2 00:00:05,240 --> 00:00:09,440 Speaker 1: ever heard of Poker Talks? Poker talks? Is that? Is 3 00:00:09,480 --> 00:00:12,280 Speaker 1: that like detox for playing poker or what? I actually 4 00:00:12,280 --> 00:00:16,680 Speaker 1: have not heard of it. It's actually botox for playing poker. Oh, 5 00:00:16,720 --> 00:00:19,640 Speaker 1: I get it. That's smart. Yeah. It was invented by 6 00:00:19,640 --> 00:00:22,880 Speaker 1: this New York City doctor. His name's Jack Birdie, and 7 00:00:23,040 --> 00:00:25,400 Speaker 1: he's also this poker player, and he realized the biggest 8 00:00:25,400 --> 00:00:28,240 Speaker 1: problem for poker players is their tells, like people who 9 00:00:28,360 --> 00:00:31,240 Speaker 1: like far with their brows or curl their lips as 10 00:00:31,240 --> 00:00:34,040 Speaker 1: they're trying to bluff, and so he basically came up 11 00:00:34,040 --> 00:00:37,280 Speaker 1: with a few places to administer botox so you don't 12 00:00:37,320 --> 00:00:40,680 Speaker 1: show your hand as much. Now, I'm guessing this is 13 00:00:40,720 --> 00:00:42,800 Speaker 1: just for humans or can you know those dogs that 14 00:00:42,840 --> 00:00:46,440 Speaker 1: play poker? Can they also get this treatment? I love 15 00:00:46,520 --> 00:00:48,800 Speaker 1: the idea of like a sharpay or one of those 16 00:00:48,840 --> 00:00:51,600 Speaker 1: like super wrinkly dogs just getting all smoothed out, because 17 00:00:51,640 --> 00:00:55,040 Speaker 1: the boats I feel like it will take so many 18 00:00:55,080 --> 00:00:58,400 Speaker 1: years off the dog. But hearing about Poker Talks treatments 19 00:00:58,480 --> 00:01:00,959 Speaker 1: really made us wonder, like, what the history of these 20 00:01:01,000 --> 00:01:03,880 Speaker 1: cosmetic procedures. How long have people have been getting those 21 00:01:04,000 --> 00:01:06,400 Speaker 1: jobs and why was the Civil War such a turning 22 00:01:06,400 --> 00:01:31,160 Speaker 1: point for plastic surgery. So let's dive in their podcast. Listeners, 23 00:01:31,160 --> 00:01:33,320 Speaker 1: Welcome to Part Time Genius. I'm Will Pearson and as 24 00:01:33,360 --> 00:01:36,120 Speaker 1: always I'm joined by my good friend Mangesh Ticketer and 25 00:01:36,160 --> 00:01:38,920 Speaker 1: on the other side of the soundproof glass. Really feeling 26 00:01:38,959 --> 00:01:42,560 Speaker 1: that burn because he's doing his daily set of Facer sizes. 27 00:01:42,560 --> 00:01:44,160 Speaker 1: I don't know if you've noticed this man, he's been 28 00:01:44,200 --> 00:01:47,039 Speaker 1: doing them all week. I didn't. Well, that is our 29 00:01:47,080 --> 00:01:51,120 Speaker 1: friend and producer Tristan McNeil. Now. Tristan claims these exercises 30 00:01:51,120 --> 00:01:54,760 Speaker 1: are a viable alternative to plastic surgery, something about how 31 00:01:54,840 --> 00:01:57,840 Speaker 1: like toning your face muscles can make you look younger. 32 00:01:57,960 --> 00:02:00,639 Speaker 1: So good luck to you, Tristan. You already pretty young looking. 33 00:02:00,680 --> 00:02:02,480 Speaker 1: But you know, we'll see if this makes a difference. 34 00:02:02,840 --> 00:02:05,480 Speaker 1: And honestly, from here, it mostly looks like he's just 35 00:02:05,560 --> 00:02:08,840 Speaker 1: kind of smushing his cheeks and making this little turtle face. 36 00:02:08,960 --> 00:02:10,720 Speaker 1: It's kind of I wish everybody could see this. It's 37 00:02:10,720 --> 00:02:13,400 Speaker 1: a little weird. Yeah, So he was trying to explain 38 00:02:13,400 --> 00:02:15,600 Speaker 1: this to me earlier. He's been doing this old nineties 39 00:02:15,639 --> 00:02:19,040 Speaker 1: exercise routine that's supposed to tighten facial muscles, and he 40 00:02:19,200 --> 00:02:22,280 Speaker 1: said it's called cheek energizing, and supposedly as part of 41 00:02:22,320 --> 00:02:25,480 Speaker 1: this whole face of size program that this doctor named 42 00:02:25,520 --> 00:02:29,760 Speaker 1: Carol Maggio developed like thirty years ago. It all sounds 43 00:02:29,919 --> 00:02:33,079 Speaker 1: and looks pretty bizarre, and I'm mostly just impressed that 44 00:02:33,120 --> 00:02:36,240 Speaker 1: Tristan was able to decode the written instructions. So I 45 00:02:36,280 --> 00:02:38,799 Speaker 1: actually looked this up and this is a breakdown to 46 00:02:38,880 --> 00:02:42,840 Speaker 1: the cheek energizer move he's been doing. Quote, place an 47 00:02:42,840 --> 00:02:46,240 Speaker 1: index finger lightly on the top of each cheek. Now, 48 00:02:46,320 --> 00:02:48,919 Speaker 1: smile with the middle of your upper lip while thinking 49 00:02:48,960 --> 00:02:52,680 Speaker 1: about the expression you pulling the top lip flat against 50 00:02:52,720 --> 00:02:55,799 Speaker 1: your teeth. Keep your upper and lower lips firmly pulling 51 00:02:55,800 --> 00:02:58,400 Speaker 1: away from each other, and feel your cheeks move under 52 00:02:58,400 --> 00:03:02,480 Speaker 1: your index fingers. Repeat this, smile and release. I mean, 53 00:03:02,720 --> 00:03:07,240 Speaker 1: none of this makes any sense to me. Trying it feels, 54 00:03:07,320 --> 00:03:11,680 Speaker 1: it feels weird. I don't know the middle of your lip, Okay. 55 00:03:12,240 --> 00:03:14,400 Speaker 1: What's strange is that if we wanted, we can actually, 56 00:03:14,400 --> 00:03:17,040 Speaker 1: like ask the inventor herself about how to do this. 57 00:03:17,120 --> 00:03:21,120 Speaker 1: At age seventy three, she actually promotes facer size on Skype, 58 00:03:21,160 --> 00:03:22,840 Speaker 1: and you can do a skype session with her and 59 00:03:22,919 --> 00:03:25,560 Speaker 1: she'll walk you through it face to face. I am 60 00:03:25,600 --> 00:03:27,960 Speaker 1: totally going to do this manga that she sounds weird 61 00:03:28,080 --> 00:03:29,720 Speaker 1: enough for me to want to do it, and it 62 00:03:29,800 --> 00:03:31,920 Speaker 1: does seem like could be a pretty surreal experience. But 63 00:03:32,160 --> 00:03:35,560 Speaker 1: as proponents of plastic surgery will tell you, most improvements 64 00:03:35,600 --> 00:03:38,560 Speaker 1: from facial exercise just don't hold a candle to the 65 00:03:38,600 --> 00:03:41,440 Speaker 1: results you get from a shot of botox or maybe 66 00:03:41,440 --> 00:03:43,880 Speaker 1: a half hour under the knife. And when you think 67 00:03:43,920 --> 00:03:46,960 Speaker 1: about it, that relative ease and the immediacy of the results, 68 00:03:47,160 --> 00:03:50,400 Speaker 1: it's what makes cosmetic procedures so appealing in the first place. 69 00:03:51,080 --> 00:03:54,440 Speaker 1: For instance, in two thousand seventeen alone, fifteen point seven 70 00:03:54,520 --> 00:03:58,800 Speaker 1: million minimally invasive cosmetic procedures were performed in the US, 71 00:03:59,120 --> 00:04:02,760 Speaker 1: So we're talking about things like botox injections, chemical peels, 72 00:04:02,880 --> 00:04:07,560 Speaker 1: laser hair removals. That's almost two increase since the year 73 00:04:07,640 --> 00:04:11,200 Speaker 1: two thousand. Obviously, big reason for that growth is that 74 00:04:11,240 --> 00:04:15,120 Speaker 1: cosmetic procedures have become easier, less invasive, you know, than 75 00:04:15,160 --> 00:04:18,200 Speaker 1: they were in the years past. But millions of people 76 00:04:18,240 --> 00:04:20,360 Speaker 1: are lining up each year to have parts of their 77 00:04:20,400 --> 00:04:23,719 Speaker 1: bodies nipped and tucked and shaped and plumped, but you know, 78 00:04:23,760 --> 00:04:25,720 Speaker 1: whether or not that's a good thing is still kind 79 00:04:25,720 --> 00:04:27,840 Speaker 1: of up in the air for many people. And so 80 00:04:27,880 --> 00:04:30,000 Speaker 1: with that question of mind, we've got to be interesting 81 00:04:30,040 --> 00:04:33,560 Speaker 1: to look into the history of plastic surgery, including how 82 00:04:33,600 --> 00:04:35,839 Speaker 1: and why it got started and many of the ways 83 00:04:35,880 --> 00:04:38,080 Speaker 1: it's changed over the years. And then a little bit 84 00:04:38,200 --> 00:04:40,240 Speaker 1: later in the episode, I think we'll check out some 85 00:04:40,279 --> 00:04:43,040 Speaker 1: of the more recent trends in the industry, as well 86 00:04:43,080 --> 00:04:45,440 Speaker 1: as how a selfie stick might make you think twice 87 00:04:45,480 --> 00:04:49,120 Speaker 1: about getting a nose job. That's right, But you know, 88 00:04:49,200 --> 00:04:50,680 Speaker 1: before we get into any of that, I thought we 89 00:04:50,680 --> 00:04:52,600 Speaker 1: could start by breaking down some of the terms will 90 00:04:52,640 --> 00:04:55,000 Speaker 1: be using today, you know, just so things don't get 91 00:04:55,040 --> 00:04:57,559 Speaker 1: confusing a little bit later. So in general, we refer 92 00:04:57,680 --> 00:05:00,479 Speaker 1: to the term plastic surgery for a few for things 93 00:05:00,480 --> 00:05:03,320 Speaker 1: at once. You know, they're cosmetic surgeries, which are the 94 00:05:03,320 --> 00:05:06,640 Speaker 1: ones meant to enhance a person's overall appearance and aren't 95 00:05:06,640 --> 00:05:11,560 Speaker 1: considered medically necessary, so things like liposuction or or facelifts, 96 00:05:11,960 --> 00:05:14,160 Speaker 1: as well as the less invasive procedures you mentioned, like 97 00:05:14,240 --> 00:05:17,440 Speaker 1: chemical peels and botox. But plastic surgery can also refer 98 00:05:17,480 --> 00:05:20,200 Speaker 1: to reconstructive surgeries and those are the ones performed to 99 00:05:20,279 --> 00:05:23,000 Speaker 1: restore the normal function or appearance of a person's body, 100 00:05:23,200 --> 00:05:27,120 Speaker 1: and for the most part, these are considered medically necessary. Yeah, 101 00:05:27,120 --> 00:05:28,919 Speaker 1: I mean there are several of these types. When you 102 00:05:28,920 --> 00:05:31,800 Speaker 1: think about surgeries like you know, repairing a cleft palate, 103 00:05:32,120 --> 00:05:36,000 Speaker 1: or the unbelievable jobs that the surgeons can do when 104 00:05:36,000 --> 00:05:39,160 Speaker 1: they're reconstructing a burn victim's face or their body, it's 105 00:05:39,160 --> 00:05:42,440 Speaker 1: pretty remarkable how far this has come. Yeah, and I 106 00:05:42,480 --> 00:05:44,760 Speaker 1: did think it was worth mentioning because there's still a 107 00:05:44,760 --> 00:05:47,200 Speaker 1: ton of stigma surrounding the term, Like lots of people 108 00:05:47,240 --> 00:05:49,960 Speaker 1: only associate plastic surgery with the cosmetic side of things 109 00:05:50,000 --> 00:05:53,560 Speaker 1: like tummy toks and calf implants. Yeah. Well, and my 110 00:05:53,680 --> 00:05:55,440 Speaker 1: guess is that the stigma has a lot to do 111 00:05:55,520 --> 00:05:58,000 Speaker 1: with the word plastic itself. I mean, I think it 112 00:05:58,040 --> 00:06:02,200 Speaker 1: makes people think about fakeness, artificiality, and all the other 113 00:06:02,360 --> 00:06:06,280 Speaker 1: things we associate with plastic as a substance. Like we 114 00:06:06,279 --> 00:06:09,240 Speaker 1: wrap our view of plastic as being cheap and disposable 115 00:06:09,279 --> 00:06:12,360 Speaker 1: onto these surgeries that share this name, which of course 116 00:06:12,440 --> 00:06:15,159 Speaker 1: is pretty unfair when you really think about it. Yeah, 117 00:06:15,240 --> 00:06:17,840 Speaker 1: I mean, especially when you consider that the name doesn't 118 00:06:17,880 --> 00:06:20,159 Speaker 1: have anything to do with plastic in the first place. 119 00:06:20,520 --> 00:06:22,599 Speaker 1: Like I read this week that the first time the 120 00:06:22,640 --> 00:06:25,960 Speaker 1: word plastic was actually used to describe a surgical technique 121 00:06:26,080 --> 00:06:29,960 Speaker 1: was an eighteen thirty seven, which is so long before 122 00:06:29,960 --> 00:06:32,480 Speaker 1: plastic the substance was even invented, all right, So then 123 00:06:32,520 --> 00:06:34,479 Speaker 1: what did the term actually mean when it was used 124 00:06:34,480 --> 00:06:37,360 Speaker 1: in eighteen thirty seven. It actually came from the Greek 125 00:06:37,400 --> 00:06:40,839 Speaker 1: word plastic coast, which means to mold or give form. 126 00:06:40,960 --> 00:06:44,760 Speaker 1: So a plastic surgery was basically a shaping surgery, and 127 00:06:44,960 --> 00:06:47,200 Speaker 1: that was pretty fitting because the earliest forms of plastic 128 00:06:47,200 --> 00:06:50,080 Speaker 1: surgery were based much more in reconstruction than they were 129 00:06:50,360 --> 00:06:53,760 Speaker 1: purely cosmetic changes. You know, it's interesting. This is another 130 00:06:53,800 --> 00:06:55,600 Speaker 1: one of those things that when we started looking into 131 00:06:55,600 --> 00:06:59,159 Speaker 1: the history, you really don't think about how far back 132 00:06:59,240 --> 00:07:02,120 Speaker 1: some of these things go. And so actually the earliest 133 00:07:02,120 --> 00:07:04,760 Speaker 1: known example of plastic surgery dates all the way back 134 00:07:04,800 --> 00:07:08,359 Speaker 1: to the sixth century BC, and it was indeed a 135 00:07:08,400 --> 00:07:11,720 Speaker 1: form of reconstruction. This was a nose job. The technique 136 00:07:11,720 --> 00:07:14,280 Speaker 1: was invented in ancient India by a physician and a 137 00:07:14,320 --> 00:07:17,440 Speaker 1: surgeon named sush Ruta. And this was at the time 138 00:07:17,520 --> 00:07:19,920 Speaker 1: when you know it was common to punish an adulterer 139 00:07:20,040 --> 00:07:23,200 Speaker 1: or a thief with some form of body mutilation, usually 140 00:07:23,200 --> 00:07:26,480 Speaker 1: by cutting off the nose or maybe an ear. And 141 00:07:26,520 --> 00:07:28,680 Speaker 1: so this physician was one of many in the region 142 00:07:28,720 --> 00:07:31,880 Speaker 1: who felt that this was kind of public shaming and 143 00:07:32,040 --> 00:07:34,120 Speaker 1: it was just way over the line, of course, and 144 00:07:34,480 --> 00:07:37,280 Speaker 1: you know, basically ensured that the criminals would be shunned 145 00:07:37,280 --> 00:07:39,920 Speaker 1: for the rest of their lives. So we wanted to 146 00:07:39,920 --> 00:07:42,720 Speaker 1: do something to help solve this problem, and so we 147 00:07:42,760 --> 00:07:45,440 Speaker 1: began looking for a way to help these people reintegrate 148 00:07:45,480 --> 00:07:49,080 Speaker 1: into society by restoring their appearance as much as he 149 00:07:49,120 --> 00:07:51,880 Speaker 1: possibly could. And so what he came up with was 150 00:07:51,920 --> 00:07:54,720 Speaker 1: this technique where a flap of skin was removed from 151 00:07:54,720 --> 00:07:58,400 Speaker 1: a patient's cheek and then molded and shaped into a 152 00:07:58,440 --> 00:08:01,520 Speaker 1: new nose. And so he warm the nostrils by inserting 153 00:08:01,560 --> 00:08:03,880 Speaker 1: these two hollow reads and then you leave them in 154 00:08:03,920 --> 00:08:06,760 Speaker 1: place to make sure the nostrils didn't close up as 155 00:08:06,800 --> 00:08:10,160 Speaker 1: the new nose healed. I mean, it's unbelievable that somebody 156 00:08:10,160 --> 00:08:12,960 Speaker 1: could pull this off that long ago. Yeah, and it 157 00:08:12,960 --> 00:08:17,160 Speaker 1: almost sounds like fantastical to anything like that could even work. Yeah, 158 00:08:17,200 --> 00:08:19,600 Speaker 1: it seems to have been the consensus at the time too. 159 00:08:19,640 --> 00:08:22,880 Speaker 1: But you know, once word of this method spread, other 160 00:08:22,960 --> 00:08:26,280 Speaker 1: Indian surgeons began trying it for themselves, and some even 161 00:08:26,360 --> 00:08:28,480 Speaker 1: put their own spin on the procedure by building the 162 00:08:28,520 --> 00:08:31,520 Speaker 1: replacement nose from a flap of the patient's forehead skin 163 00:08:31,720 --> 00:08:34,760 Speaker 1: rather than you know, maybe their cheek. And this early 164 00:08:34,840 --> 00:08:38,440 Speaker 1: form of rhinoplasty proved so successful that it was eventually 165 00:08:38,440 --> 00:08:42,280 Speaker 1: adapted throughout Europe, where it became known as the Indian method. 166 00:08:43,440 --> 00:08:45,640 Speaker 1: So I had actually heard about this Indian method just 167 00:08:45,679 --> 00:08:48,520 Speaker 1: because it's one of those things I feel is compulsory 168 00:08:48,640 --> 00:08:51,480 Speaker 1: if you're Indian, like for Indian pride, Like, uh, you know, 169 00:08:51,600 --> 00:08:53,680 Speaker 1: India also came up with the concept of zero as 170 00:08:53,720 --> 00:08:57,080 Speaker 1: a number and invented shampoo. Like these are just things 171 00:08:58,120 --> 00:09:01,160 Speaker 1: and you're welcome. But uh, apparently we weren't the only 172 00:09:01,200 --> 00:09:04,559 Speaker 1: innovators there. There's also something called the Italian method, and 173 00:09:04,640 --> 00:09:07,720 Speaker 1: this was invented by a surgeon named Antonio Bronca. This 174 00:09:07,760 --> 00:09:10,360 Speaker 1: was in early four hundreds and the big difference was 175 00:09:10,400 --> 00:09:12,600 Speaker 1: that Branco used a flap of skin from the upper 176 00:09:12,720 --> 00:09:15,440 Speaker 1: arm to build his patient's new noses, and this was 177 00:09:15,480 --> 00:09:18,040 Speaker 1: considered an improvement for the most part because it left 178 00:09:18,040 --> 00:09:21,080 Speaker 1: a lot less scarring than Indian method did. The only 179 00:09:21,120 --> 00:09:23,760 Speaker 1: downside was that, and this is a little strange to 180 00:09:23,760 --> 00:09:26,480 Speaker 1: think about, in order for the skin to fully attach itself, 181 00:09:26,679 --> 00:09:29,560 Speaker 1: patients actually to hold their arms against their nose for 182 00:09:29,640 --> 00:09:35,240 Speaker 1: like twenty straight days. Obviously seems super uncomfortable. It does 183 00:09:35,360 --> 00:09:37,880 Speaker 1: sound miserable, but I guess in these cases, you know, 184 00:09:38,040 --> 00:09:40,959 Speaker 1: considering the results for the payoff, I guess it was 185 00:09:41,000 --> 00:09:44,160 Speaker 1: considered worth it. But let's get back to Sushruta for 186 00:09:44,160 --> 00:09:47,960 Speaker 1: a minute. Because after his breakthrough, this plastic surgery continued 187 00:09:48,000 --> 00:09:51,360 Speaker 1: to develop throughout Europe. So, for example, ancient Rome got 188 00:09:51,360 --> 00:09:53,960 Speaker 1: in on the act sometime during the early first century, 189 00:09:54,480 --> 00:09:57,760 Speaker 1: so surgeons of the Arab pioneered bluffero plastic, which is 190 00:09:57,800 --> 00:10:00,960 Speaker 1: the adjustment of the eyelids in order to correct drooping 191 00:10:01,120 --> 00:10:04,360 Speaker 1: or squinting eyes. And around the same time, the Greek 192 00:10:04,360 --> 00:10:09,200 Speaker 1: physician Galen performed the very first purely cosmetic plastic surgery. 193 00:10:09,280 --> 00:10:11,720 Speaker 1: So it's kind of like a nose job for the wealthy. 194 00:10:13,080 --> 00:10:15,600 Speaker 1: It's kind of cool that nose jobs were like first, 195 00:10:15,679 --> 00:10:20,000 Speaker 1: both for reconstructive and cosmetic purposes. Is it's kind of stunning, 196 00:10:20,040 --> 00:10:23,400 Speaker 1: But you know, not everyone was happy about those breakthroughs 197 00:10:23,400 --> 00:10:27,080 Speaker 1: embody modification. As Christianity began to take hold in Europe 198 00:10:27,120 --> 00:10:29,680 Speaker 1: during the Middle Ages, plenty of religious leaders viewed plastic 199 00:10:29,720 --> 00:10:34,360 Speaker 1: surgery as sinful or almost borderlined blasphemous, and this belief 200 00:10:34,400 --> 00:10:37,000 Speaker 1: gained more traction in the twelfth century when the Pope 201 00:10:37,040 --> 00:10:38,960 Speaker 1: I think it's Pope Innocent, the third at the time, 202 00:10:39,120 --> 00:10:42,560 Speaker 1: he formally spoke out against it, and pretty soon after 203 00:10:42,600 --> 00:10:45,760 Speaker 1: it became a crime to surgically alter the human body. 204 00:10:46,280 --> 00:10:48,800 Speaker 1: So you see, this kind of thing happened throughout history, 205 00:10:48,800 --> 00:10:52,079 Speaker 1: but in this case, like what changed that perception? What 206 00:10:52,080 --> 00:10:55,440 Speaker 1: what made the church eventually backed down from this. This 207 00:10:55,520 --> 00:10:57,920 Speaker 1: is gonna sound strange, but a lot of the shift 208 00:10:58,080 --> 00:11:01,480 Speaker 1: was due to syphilis. Really, you know that there were 209 00:11:01,480 --> 00:11:02,880 Speaker 1: a lot of things I was guessing about. Is not 210 00:11:02,920 --> 00:11:05,760 Speaker 1: what I expected you to say, though, I know. So 211 00:11:06,240 --> 00:11:08,760 Speaker 1: there was a really bad outbreak of this disease in 212 00:11:08,800 --> 00:11:11,640 Speaker 1: Europe during the late sixteenth century, and one of the 213 00:11:11,720 --> 00:11:15,839 Speaker 1: symptoms of advance syphilis happens to be soft tissue, to 214 00:11:16,320 --> 00:11:18,200 Speaker 1: which is usually centered in the nose. I had no 215 00:11:18,240 --> 00:11:20,880 Speaker 1: idea about this, but now there were all these like 216 00:11:21,040 --> 00:11:25,040 Speaker 1: upper crusts, lords and ladies with these big gaping holes 217 00:11:25,080 --> 00:11:29,440 Speaker 1: in their faces, and suddenly this like quote sin of 218 00:11:29,480 --> 00:11:32,200 Speaker 1: like crafting a false nose, it started to seem a 219 00:11:32,240 --> 00:11:34,679 Speaker 1: whole lot better, you know than the alternative of having, 220 00:11:34,960 --> 00:11:36,800 Speaker 1: you know, a hole in your face. Yeah, I mean 221 00:11:36,840 --> 00:11:40,079 Speaker 1: that makes sense. And of course plastic surgeries development didn't 222 00:11:40,200 --> 00:11:43,040 Speaker 1: end in Europe, and the techniques eventually made their way 223 00:11:43,120 --> 00:11:45,720 Speaker 1: here to the United States, with one of the earliest 224 00:11:45,720 --> 00:11:49,400 Speaker 1: practitioners being Dr John Medhour. You know, he and his 225 00:11:49,440 --> 00:11:52,920 Speaker 1: sons ran this successful practice in Virginia, and they were 226 00:11:52,960 --> 00:11:56,800 Speaker 1: specializing in repairing genital birth effects and then later on 227 00:11:56,880 --> 00:12:01,320 Speaker 1: in reconstructive surgery, and his legacy is actually really impressive. 228 00:12:01,440 --> 00:12:04,360 Speaker 1: So met Hour is credited with performing the first hard 229 00:12:04,440 --> 00:12:08,600 Speaker 1: cleft palate repair on the America's in eighteen seven, and notably, 230 00:12:08,640 --> 00:12:11,800 Speaker 1: he completed the procedure by transplanting pieces of bone rather 231 00:12:11,880 --> 00:12:14,880 Speaker 1: than just skin or muscle as previous surgeons had done. 232 00:12:15,240 --> 00:12:17,720 Speaker 1: And so this new technique was this huge leap forward 233 00:12:17,760 --> 00:12:20,920 Speaker 1: for reconstructive surgery, and it's actually the main reason why 234 00:12:21,000 --> 00:12:25,000 Speaker 1: Dr Metour is often called America's first plastic surgeon. Yeah, 235 00:12:25,040 --> 00:12:27,680 Speaker 1: So it really seems like the nineteenth century is when 236 00:12:27,760 --> 00:12:30,720 Speaker 1: modern plastic surgery really started to take off, and I 237 00:12:30,760 --> 00:12:32,880 Speaker 1: was reading about how much of a game changer the 238 00:12:32,960 --> 00:12:36,440 Speaker 1: Civil War was for battlefield medicine. I mean, you think 239 00:12:36,480 --> 00:12:40,720 Speaker 1: about things like amputation techniques or more reliable forms of anesthesia, 240 00:12:41,120 --> 00:12:44,480 Speaker 1: but facial reconstruction was another area that saw these major 241 00:12:44,520 --> 00:12:48,680 Speaker 1: advances during America's bloodiest war, and records actually show that 242 00:12:48,840 --> 00:12:52,560 Speaker 1: Union surgeons perform more than thirty successful plastic surgeries on 243 00:12:52,640 --> 00:12:56,800 Speaker 1: these disfigured soldiers during the war, and they also pioneered 244 00:12:56,880 --> 00:12:59,080 Speaker 1: new techniques that would later become standards in the field, 245 00:12:59,160 --> 00:13:01,920 Speaker 1: like taking photo us to track the progress of repairs 246 00:13:02,000 --> 00:13:04,719 Speaker 1: and and also using smaller sutures for incisions to help 247 00:13:04,800 --> 00:13:08,480 Speaker 1: minimize the scarring. Yeah, you know, it's interesting how these 248 00:13:08,520 --> 00:13:11,640 Speaker 1: advancements happened during war, because it actually wasn't just the 249 00:13:11,679 --> 00:13:14,720 Speaker 1: Civil War where these kinds of breakthroughs happening, like both 250 00:13:14,760 --> 00:13:18,480 Speaker 1: world wars actually also brought major innovations the plastic surgery 251 00:13:18,520 --> 00:13:21,240 Speaker 1: as well. Yeah, I mean that that's definitely a good point, 252 00:13:21,360 --> 00:13:23,720 Speaker 1: and we should spotlight a few of those advances before 253 00:13:23,760 --> 00:13:25,880 Speaker 1: we talk about the state of plastic surgery today. But 254 00:13:26,240 --> 00:13:28,000 Speaker 1: before we go any further, why don't we take a 255 00:13:28,080 --> 00:13:46,199 Speaker 1: quick break. You're listening to Part Time Genius and we're 256 00:13:46,200 --> 00:13:50,280 Speaker 1: talking about the long, surprising history of plastic surgery. Okay, well, 257 00:13:50,320 --> 00:13:52,720 Speaker 1: so we're up to the twentieth century now in our timeline, 258 00:13:52,720 --> 00:13:55,680 Speaker 1: and we were just about to get into World War One. Yeah, 259 00:13:55,679 --> 00:13:57,880 Speaker 1: that's right. You know, as we were saying, earlier wars 260 00:13:57,920 --> 00:14:01,120 Speaker 1: have certainly led to these turning points, and you know, 261 00:14:01,200 --> 00:14:05,400 Speaker 1: reconstruction of various kinds and facial reconstruction specifically. And there 262 00:14:05,400 --> 00:14:07,400 Speaker 1: were a couple of reasons for this. I mean, if 263 00:14:07,400 --> 00:14:10,040 Speaker 1: you think about what was advanced in terms of warfare 264 00:14:10,080 --> 00:14:12,640 Speaker 1: at that time, you had machine guns and aerial bombers 265 00:14:12,640 --> 00:14:15,080 Speaker 1: that were being used in combat and and really for 266 00:14:15,120 --> 00:14:18,320 Speaker 1: the first time during World War One. And the result 267 00:14:18,400 --> 00:14:20,920 Speaker 1: of this, obvious, you know, tragic result of this is 268 00:14:20,920 --> 00:14:23,960 Speaker 1: that more soldiers suffered facial wounds due to bullets and 269 00:14:24,000 --> 00:14:27,600 Speaker 1: shrapnel than in any of the wars before them. And 270 00:14:27,640 --> 00:14:30,720 Speaker 1: you know, it's obviously awful, but the wounds were often 271 00:14:30,760 --> 00:14:34,160 Speaker 1: more extensive than surgeons were used to treating. So the 272 00:14:34,160 --> 00:14:36,520 Speaker 1: good news here is though, that anesthesia and the treatment 273 00:14:36,520 --> 00:14:40,720 Speaker 1: of infections had definitely improved drastically by this time, So 274 00:14:40,720 --> 00:14:43,240 Speaker 1: you had serious injuries that would have been fatal in 275 00:14:43,280 --> 00:14:46,960 Speaker 1: the past that we're now considered survivable, and that included 276 00:14:46,960 --> 00:14:51,280 Speaker 1: a lot of major facial disfigurements as a result of this. Yeah. 277 00:14:51,440 --> 00:14:54,120 Speaker 1: We mentioned earlier that there were some like thirty odd 278 00:14:54,120 --> 00:14:57,360 Speaker 1: plastic surgeries during the Civil War, and that actually doesn't 279 00:14:57,360 --> 00:14:59,560 Speaker 1: sound like that many at first, but when you consider 280 00:14:59,600 --> 00:15:01,680 Speaker 1: how many soldiers died just because there was no way 281 00:15:01,720 --> 00:15:04,360 Speaker 1: to stave off infection, it starts to make sense why 282 00:15:04,400 --> 00:15:07,040 Speaker 1: the number was so low. Yeah, And so with World 283 00:15:07,040 --> 00:15:09,520 Speaker 1: War One, surgeons suddenly found themselves with a lot of 284 00:15:09,640 --> 00:15:13,720 Speaker 1: chances to develop and refine new ways to deal with disfigurements. 285 00:15:14,240 --> 00:15:17,120 Speaker 1: And one member of the medical community was especially helpful 286 00:15:17,200 --> 00:15:20,400 Speaker 1: in this regard. His name was doctor Harold Gillies, and 287 00:15:20,520 --> 00:15:23,200 Speaker 1: he was actually a nose, ear and throat specialists. He 288 00:15:23,280 --> 00:15:25,440 Speaker 1: was from New Zealand and so he had joined the 289 00:15:25,480 --> 00:15:27,880 Speaker 1: Royal Army Medical Corps at the start of the war, 290 00:15:28,400 --> 00:15:31,720 Speaker 1: and so during his time on the Western Front, Gilly's 291 00:15:31,800 --> 00:15:34,840 Speaker 1: learned as much as he could about reconstructive surgery, and 292 00:15:34,880 --> 00:15:37,560 Speaker 1: this was mostly by observing the dentist and the doctors 293 00:15:37,640 --> 00:15:40,720 Speaker 1: that he was stationed with. So then when he returns 294 00:15:40,760 --> 00:15:43,160 Speaker 1: to England, he was actually given the chance to apply 295 00:15:43,280 --> 00:15:46,640 Speaker 1: what he learned to the newly opened Queens Hospital in London. 296 00:15:47,080 --> 00:15:49,360 Speaker 1: There were more than a thousand beds there and these 297 00:15:49,360 --> 00:15:53,040 Speaker 1: were reserved for patients in need of these facial reconstruction, 298 00:15:53,080 --> 00:15:55,200 Speaker 1: so it was a ton of people. Yeah, I mean, 299 00:15:55,240 --> 00:15:57,640 Speaker 1: it's almost hard to imagine that many people needing surgeries 300 00:15:57,680 --> 00:16:00,840 Speaker 1: like that all at once. It's really it's really staggering 301 00:16:00,840 --> 00:16:03,840 Speaker 1: when you think about it. Yeah, no, it really is. Actually, 302 00:16:03,840 --> 00:16:06,520 Speaker 1: there was such a demand for these services that patients 303 00:16:06,600 --> 00:16:09,760 Speaker 1: often had to queue up outside the hospital. So even 304 00:16:09,800 --> 00:16:12,640 Speaker 1: with a thousand beds there, it just gives you a 305 00:16:12,640 --> 00:16:15,320 Speaker 1: sense of how many people were affected by this. And 306 00:16:15,720 --> 00:16:18,720 Speaker 1: there was this set of blue benches reserved exclusively for 307 00:16:18,840 --> 00:16:22,960 Speaker 1: patients with facial disfigurements, and apparently the bright blue color 308 00:16:23,120 --> 00:16:25,080 Speaker 1: was a way to warn the locals that they might 309 00:16:25,160 --> 00:16:28,000 Speaker 1: want to look away when walking past the benches, and 310 00:16:28,080 --> 00:16:31,320 Speaker 1: so it's just tragic to think about that, and you know, 311 00:16:31,320 --> 00:16:33,640 Speaker 1: it might seem insensitive at first, but it was really 312 00:16:33,680 --> 00:16:36,320 Speaker 1: as much for the patients as it was for the public. 313 00:16:36,360 --> 00:16:39,240 Speaker 1: And you know, if anything, the soldiers probably appreciated the 314 00:16:39,280 --> 00:16:41,760 Speaker 1: break from people staring at them all the time. I guess. 315 00:16:43,040 --> 00:16:47,640 Speaker 1: So what kind of breakthroughs was Gilly's making at that time. Well, 316 00:16:47,680 --> 00:16:50,240 Speaker 1: there's actually probably too many to go through here, but 317 00:16:50,360 --> 00:16:52,400 Speaker 1: one of the biggest was what he called the two 318 00:16:52,520 --> 00:16:56,520 Speaker 1: pedicle or flat procedure, I guess. So basically, Gillies would 319 00:16:56,520 --> 00:16:59,160 Speaker 1: cut a strip of living skin and tissue and then 320 00:16:59,200 --> 00:17:01,520 Speaker 1: he would form it to this tube that was still 321 00:17:01,560 --> 00:17:04,959 Speaker 1: connected to the patient at one end. Then the tube 322 00:17:05,000 --> 00:17:08,119 Speaker 1: could be laid across the patient's wounded face until the 323 00:17:08,200 --> 00:17:12,199 Speaker 1: skin graft actually took root. Which sounds pretty gruesome, but 324 00:17:12,200 --> 00:17:15,520 Speaker 1: I'm guessing there was some sort of upside to this approach. Yeah, definitely, 325 00:17:15,560 --> 00:17:18,560 Speaker 1: I mean a really big one. So before Gillies came along, 326 00:17:18,640 --> 00:17:22,000 Speaker 1: reconstructive surgeries had long struggled on how to ward off 327 00:17:22,119 --> 00:17:25,280 Speaker 1: infection in this open wound while they were waiting for 328 00:17:25,320 --> 00:17:28,879 Speaker 1: this skin graft to take So his variation solved this 329 00:17:28,920 --> 00:17:32,040 Speaker 1: problem because it ensured that blood continued to flow through 330 00:17:32,080 --> 00:17:35,520 Speaker 1: the grafted area. So then once the graft had taken root, 331 00:17:35,840 --> 00:17:38,480 Speaker 1: the surgeon could simply sever the tube and sculpt the 332 00:17:38,480 --> 00:17:42,440 Speaker 1: remaining tissue into the patient's new nose and throat. And 333 00:17:42,480 --> 00:17:44,520 Speaker 1: you know, it doesn't paint this pretty picture but the 334 00:17:44,560 --> 00:17:47,920 Speaker 1: technique was so successful that the work at Queen's Hospital 335 00:17:47,960 --> 00:17:51,600 Speaker 1: continued long after the war had ended. So in total, 336 00:17:51,680 --> 00:17:55,439 Speaker 1: the hospital performed more than eleven thousand operations on over 337 00:17:55,480 --> 00:17:58,879 Speaker 1: five thousand patients before they finally closed their doors in 338 00:17:59,000 --> 00:18:03,400 Speaker 1: nine five. And Gilly's actually received knighthood for his efforts. 339 00:18:03,680 --> 00:18:06,479 Speaker 1: And when World War two began, he kept working on 340 00:18:06,520 --> 00:18:08,840 Speaker 1: this new set of soldiers that were in the same 341 00:18:08,920 --> 00:18:12,879 Speaker 1: kind of need. That's a tremendous legacy. But you know, 342 00:18:13,119 --> 00:18:15,520 Speaker 1: we we mostly dealt with the reconstructive side of plastic 343 00:18:15,560 --> 00:18:17,320 Speaker 1: surgery so far. So what do you say we switched 344 00:18:17,359 --> 00:18:20,640 Speaker 1: gears and focus on the cosmetic side for a little bit. Yeah, 345 00:18:20,640 --> 00:18:22,760 Speaker 1: that definitely makes sense. Actually, I'll start us off with 346 00:18:22,880 --> 00:18:25,560 Speaker 1: something that I was surprised to learn this week. So, 347 00:18:26,040 --> 00:18:29,439 Speaker 1: even with nearly two million cosmetic surgeries performed in the 348 00:18:29,520 --> 00:18:33,520 Speaker 1: US each year, the plastic surgery industry overall has actually 349 00:18:33,560 --> 00:18:36,639 Speaker 1: shrunk by about twelve percent since the year two thousand. 350 00:18:37,680 --> 00:18:40,159 Speaker 1: That's strange. I wouldn't have guessed that. I mean, I 351 00:18:40,160 --> 00:18:44,160 Speaker 1: guess breast augmentations and liposuction just I mean, maybe they're 352 00:18:44,200 --> 00:18:46,760 Speaker 1: not as appealing as they used to be. Is that right, Yeah, 353 00:18:46,760 --> 00:18:49,320 Speaker 1: I mean that those are still the top two cosmetic 354 00:18:49,359 --> 00:18:52,760 Speaker 1: surgeries in the States, with roughly three hundred thousand each 355 00:18:52,920 --> 00:18:55,800 Speaker 1: per year. But on the whole, there are fewer people 356 00:18:55,920 --> 00:18:58,480 Speaker 1: undergoing the knife than there were about, you know, twenty 357 00:18:58,560 --> 00:19:01,359 Speaker 1: years or so ago. But the most interesting part to me, 358 00:19:01,400 --> 00:19:04,399 Speaker 1: at least, was that while cosmetic surgeries are down, the 359 00:19:04,520 --> 00:19:09,639 Speaker 1: number of minimally invasive cosmetic procedures like injection or laser 360 00:19:09,680 --> 00:19:12,920 Speaker 1: hair removal, those numbers are only going up each year. 361 00:19:13,320 --> 00:19:16,040 Speaker 1: So in fact, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons reports 362 00:19:16,080 --> 00:19:19,040 Speaker 1: that the number of these procedures has grown nearly two 363 00:19:19,160 --> 00:19:22,600 Speaker 1: hundred percent since two thousand, so that's the same period 364 00:19:22,600 --> 00:19:26,080 Speaker 1: that you know, these cosmetic surgeries have been declining. Sure, 365 00:19:26,160 --> 00:19:28,000 Speaker 1: and and I'm sure poker talks is one of the 366 00:19:28,000 --> 00:19:31,159 Speaker 1: biggest reasons for all of exactly. You know, I do 367 00:19:31,240 --> 00:19:33,719 Speaker 1: wonder what's behind that downward shift, Like, is it just 368 00:19:33,840 --> 00:19:36,639 Speaker 1: that the minimally invasive stuff requires less downtime than than 369 00:19:36,720 --> 00:19:38,920 Speaker 1: the full on surgeries or what's going on here? Yeah, 370 00:19:39,000 --> 00:19:40,679 Speaker 1: I mean I think that's part of it, you know, 371 00:19:40,680 --> 00:19:43,520 Speaker 1: plus the fact that these procedures are cheaper, they're faster. 372 00:19:43,760 --> 00:19:46,640 Speaker 1: Of course, you know, less invasive, like you mentioned. And 373 00:19:46,680 --> 00:19:48,399 Speaker 1: I think it also doesn't hurt that there isn't as 374 00:19:48,520 --> 00:19:51,920 Speaker 1: much stigma around something like microderm abrasion as there might 375 00:19:51,920 --> 00:19:54,160 Speaker 1: be in getting a tummy tuck or a nose job 376 00:19:54,240 --> 00:19:56,919 Speaker 1: or something like that. So I guess it kind of 377 00:19:56,920 --> 00:19:59,080 Speaker 1: comes back to the idea that plastic surgery might still 378 00:19:59,080 --> 00:20:02,440 Speaker 1: carry a connotation of phoniness like and I guess these 379 00:20:02,440 --> 00:20:04,360 Speaker 1: similar types of procedures are a kind of a way 380 00:20:04,359 --> 00:20:07,920 Speaker 1: of sidestepping that stigma while still altering your appearance. Yeah, 381 00:20:08,040 --> 00:20:10,240 Speaker 1: And you know, actually, just in looking this up, I 382 00:20:10,240 --> 00:20:13,280 Speaker 1: think that desire for a more natural look as something 383 00:20:13,320 --> 00:20:15,880 Speaker 1: that came up a lot. And there's a really good 384 00:20:15,960 --> 00:20:18,879 Speaker 1: article about this and allure this past month, which is 385 00:20:19,080 --> 00:20:21,080 Speaker 1: a sentence I never really thought i'd be saying, but 386 00:20:21,840 --> 00:20:24,240 Speaker 1: I did want to share a quote from it really quickly. 387 00:20:24,280 --> 00:20:27,119 Speaker 1: The author is Caitlyn Clark, and here's what she writes. 388 00:20:27,760 --> 00:20:32,520 Speaker 1: Disproportionate breast enhancement, overfilled lips, and exaggerated cosmetic procedures in 389 00:20:32,600 --> 00:20:36,320 Speaker 1: general are all trends on their way out. Now. A 390 00:20:36,359 --> 00:20:40,760 Speaker 1: successful plastic surgery or cosmetic procedure should no longer be obvious. 391 00:20:41,160 --> 00:20:44,960 Speaker 1: Patients are increasingly wanting to maintain their general facial structure, 392 00:20:45,119 --> 00:20:49,520 Speaker 1: inherited family traits, and just generally wanting to look like themselves, 393 00:20:49,560 --> 00:20:53,240 Speaker 1: but with a few refined tweaks, which definitely tracks with 394 00:20:53,320 --> 00:20:56,520 Speaker 1: these so called tweakments I read about last week. So um, 395 00:20:56,640 --> 00:20:59,320 Speaker 1: there's this new skin tightening treatment that's supposed to take 396 00:20:59,359 --> 00:21:02,480 Speaker 1: off this year. It's a face tight and it actually 397 00:21:02,600 --> 00:21:05,520 Speaker 1: uses this radio frequency energy to tighten and sculpt the 398 00:21:05,520 --> 00:21:08,960 Speaker 1: skin around your neck and joline. It's it's totally non surgical, 399 00:21:09,040 --> 00:21:11,480 Speaker 1: and the effects supposedly last up to five years, which 400 00:21:11,520 --> 00:21:14,320 Speaker 1: is kind of amazing. And even on the surgical side, 401 00:21:14,320 --> 00:21:17,240 Speaker 1: it seems like smaller, less obvious treatments are how most 402 00:21:17,240 --> 00:21:19,320 Speaker 1: people want to go these days. For instance, there's this 403 00:21:19,680 --> 00:21:22,760 Speaker 1: one procedure that's becoming really popular right now, and it 404 00:21:22,800 --> 00:21:25,600 Speaker 1: addresses something so obscure that you probably forgot. It's even 405 00:21:25,600 --> 00:21:28,480 Speaker 1: a body part. I'm going to guess that we're talking 406 00:21:28,480 --> 00:21:31,200 Speaker 1: about the U viola here at the back of your throw, 407 00:21:31,280 --> 00:21:33,600 Speaker 1: because I've actually heard that can go in and sort 408 00:21:33,600 --> 00:21:36,600 Speaker 1: of like shave it down if it's bothering you. Did 409 00:21:36,600 --> 00:21:39,080 Speaker 1: you know this? I didn't realize that, but I guess 410 00:21:39,080 --> 00:21:42,160 Speaker 1: it's good to know. But you know that the surgery 411 00:21:42,200 --> 00:21:44,840 Speaker 1: I'm talking about is actually for the filtrum, which is 412 00:21:44,880 --> 00:21:47,840 Speaker 1: that little indented space between your nose and your lip, 413 00:21:48,040 --> 00:21:52,439 Speaker 1: and it's sometimes also called cupids bow too. Alright, so 414 00:21:52,600 --> 00:21:57,040 Speaker 1: what exactly are people doing to their filtrum's? Apparently the 415 00:21:57,080 --> 00:22:00,679 Speaker 1: filtrum elongates over time, so a lotng one is a 416 00:22:00,680 --> 00:22:03,400 Speaker 1: pretty clear sign of age for some people. But now 417 00:22:03,440 --> 00:22:05,600 Speaker 1: there's this quick little surgery where you make a tiny 418 00:22:05,600 --> 00:22:07,960 Speaker 1: incision it goes right under the nose, and then lift 419 00:22:08,040 --> 00:22:10,600 Speaker 1: up the lip a little so the filtrum looks smaller. 420 00:22:10,680 --> 00:22:12,680 Speaker 1: And while that might still sound like a lot of 421 00:22:12,720 --> 00:22:16,400 Speaker 1: trouble over something so small and so unnoticeable, the procedure 422 00:22:16,440 --> 00:22:19,480 Speaker 1: tends to be easier and safer than getting lip injections 423 00:22:19,600 --> 00:22:21,520 Speaker 1: or I guess using a bunch of weird fillers to 424 00:22:21,520 --> 00:22:24,320 Speaker 1: pump up your lips. Yeah, I mean, I can imagine 425 00:22:24,320 --> 00:22:27,720 Speaker 1: how this new method might provide a more natural looking result. 426 00:22:27,800 --> 00:22:29,880 Speaker 1: And you know, from everything I've been reading this week, 427 00:22:30,240 --> 00:22:33,480 Speaker 1: it does seem like the average cosmetic surgery patient is 428 00:22:33,520 --> 00:22:37,160 Speaker 1: more interested in this direction nowadays, Like not this complete overhaul, 429 00:22:37,240 --> 00:22:39,520 Speaker 1: but kind of a subtle Like I kept seeing the 430 00:22:39,520 --> 00:22:43,520 Speaker 1: word plusing of what's already there. Yeah, it's an interesting 431 00:22:43,560 --> 00:22:46,040 Speaker 1: shift from the way we used to be with these 432 00:22:46,080 --> 00:22:48,760 Speaker 1: like over the top changes that gave cosmetic surgery such 433 00:22:48,760 --> 00:22:50,560 Speaker 1: a bad rap in the first place. But you know, 434 00:22:50,720 --> 00:22:53,760 Speaker 1: there's still a lot of potential pitfalls with these procedures, 435 00:22:53,960 --> 00:22:55,840 Speaker 1: not to mention the lingering question of whether all this 436 00:22:55,880 --> 00:22:59,840 Speaker 1: focus on physical appearance and beauty is actually good for us. All. 437 00:23:00,080 --> 00:23:01,840 Speaker 1: We can spend a little bit of time mulling that 438 00:23:01,840 --> 00:23:03,760 Speaker 1: one over. But before we get to that, let's take 439 00:23:03,760 --> 00:23:21,800 Speaker 1: one more quick break, all right, Mago. So before the break, 440 00:23:21,840 --> 00:23:25,040 Speaker 1: you were saying there are still some drawbacks to cosmetic surgery, 441 00:23:25,080 --> 00:23:27,760 Speaker 1: even with all the advancements and the greater focus on 442 00:23:27,800 --> 00:23:30,600 Speaker 1: a more natural look that we see these days. So 443 00:23:30,800 --> 00:23:32,399 Speaker 1: do you have an example of what kind of stuff 444 00:23:32,400 --> 00:23:35,560 Speaker 1: you're you're actually referring to? Yeah, So, why don't we 445 00:23:35,600 --> 00:23:37,719 Speaker 1: go back to nose jobs for a second. We live 446 00:23:37,760 --> 00:23:39,880 Speaker 1: in such an age of wonder is that it's now 447 00:23:39,920 --> 00:23:43,280 Speaker 1: possible to actually reshape your nose without the need for 448 00:23:43,400 --> 00:23:46,720 Speaker 1: any surgery at all. Instead, there are these are non 449 00:23:46,720 --> 00:23:50,720 Speaker 1: surgical nose jobs that you got I guess you inject 450 00:23:50,800 --> 00:23:54,080 Speaker 1: this acid based filler into your nose, and the filler 451 00:23:54,119 --> 00:23:57,000 Speaker 1: then lodges into the imperfections in a person's nose, kind 452 00:23:57,040 --> 00:23:59,439 Speaker 1: of filling in the gaps and smoothing everything into this 453 00:23:59,600 --> 00:24:03,640 Speaker 1: more dreamline shape. I mean, it's interesting because it kind 454 00:24:03,640 --> 00:24:06,240 Speaker 1: of goes back to some of the reconstructive nose jobs 455 00:24:06,240 --> 00:24:09,000 Speaker 1: we talked about earlier in the episode. You know, we're 456 00:24:09,040 --> 00:24:11,680 Speaker 1: you're actually trying to build up the nose rather than 457 00:24:11,760 --> 00:24:14,359 Speaker 1: shave it down like we're used to seeing. But in 458 00:24:14,359 --> 00:24:18,199 Speaker 1: this case, like, what's the concern? Is the filler unsafe? No, 459 00:24:18,640 --> 00:24:20,360 Speaker 1: it's not that. And if I were going to sum 460 00:24:20,480 --> 00:24:22,600 Speaker 1: up the worry, I I think I'd say that the 461 00:24:22,640 --> 00:24:24,879 Speaker 1: procedure makes it too easy to change the shape of 462 00:24:24,880 --> 00:24:27,480 Speaker 1: your nose, and the whole thing takes something like fifteen 463 00:24:27,520 --> 00:24:31,679 Speaker 1: minutes of results are visible right away. But you know what, 464 00:24:31,760 --> 00:24:33,480 Speaker 1: while that sounds like it might be a win across 465 00:24:33,520 --> 00:24:36,439 Speaker 1: the board, there's evidence that the ease of access is 466 00:24:36,440 --> 00:24:38,879 Speaker 1: actually resulting in way more people getting nose jobs than 467 00:24:38,920 --> 00:24:41,919 Speaker 1: they would otherwise. But what's concerning is that people are 468 00:24:42,040 --> 00:24:44,439 Speaker 1: changing the shape of their nose or other parts of 469 00:24:44,480 --> 00:24:47,120 Speaker 1: their bodies based on false evidence. And I'm actually gonna 470 00:24:47,119 --> 00:24:50,040 Speaker 1: tell you what this is uh. According to a recent 471 00:24:50,119 --> 00:24:54,200 Speaker 1: report from the American Academy of Facial, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, 472 00:24:54,560 --> 00:24:56,680 Speaker 1: about fifty five for some of the people who visit 473 00:24:56,720 --> 00:24:59,600 Speaker 1: a plastic surgeon do so because they want to improve 474 00:24:59,760 --> 00:25:04,560 Speaker 1: the look at their selfies. Yeah, that's that's a little disconcerting. 475 00:25:04,600 --> 00:25:06,600 Speaker 1: But I mean, on the other hand, is wanting to 476 00:25:06,680 --> 00:25:09,240 Speaker 1: look better in selfies that much different than wanting to 477 00:25:09,320 --> 00:25:11,800 Speaker 1: look good in a bathing suit or in a wedding photo, 478 00:25:12,040 --> 00:25:15,560 Speaker 1: or you know, like whatever other goal people might have. No, 479 00:25:15,640 --> 00:25:17,600 Speaker 1: I mean, it isn't. But but the red flag in 480 00:25:17,640 --> 00:25:20,800 Speaker 1: this case is that selfies aren't actually an accurate representation 481 00:25:20,840 --> 00:25:23,119 Speaker 1: of the person who took him. In fact, that there 482 00:25:23,200 --> 00:25:25,400 Speaker 1: was a study just last year that found that selfies 483 00:25:25,440 --> 00:25:28,919 Speaker 1: taken too close can make your nose appear about thirty 484 00:25:29,400 --> 00:25:32,680 Speaker 1: larger than it really is. And that makes sense, right, Like, 485 00:25:32,680 --> 00:25:34,320 Speaker 1: like if if your nose sticks out of your face, 486 00:25:34,359 --> 00:25:36,760 Speaker 1: it means it's close to the camera and as a result, 487 00:25:36,800 --> 00:25:40,000 Speaker 1: it's much bigger compared to everything else. I mean, that 488 00:25:40,080 --> 00:25:43,320 Speaker 1: makes sense. But but what about the plastic surgeons themselves, 489 00:25:43,359 --> 00:25:45,760 Speaker 1: Like that wouldn't they know that selfies aren't a fair 490 00:25:45,760 --> 00:25:48,639 Speaker 1: representation of their clients that did they just go ahead 491 00:25:48,680 --> 00:25:51,800 Speaker 1: with the procedures anyway. I mean, at the end of 492 00:25:51,840 --> 00:25:53,640 Speaker 1: the day, it's not really their call to make right. 493 00:25:53,720 --> 00:25:56,400 Speaker 1: But some plastic surgeons do try to talk their patients 494 00:25:56,440 --> 00:25:58,920 Speaker 1: out of it whenever possible. So you know, the study 495 00:25:58,920 --> 00:26:01,680 Speaker 1: I mentioned was champion by this facial plastic surgeon named 496 00:26:01,760 --> 00:26:06,400 Speaker 1: Boris pash Kover, and you noticed how frequently his patients 497 00:26:06,400 --> 00:26:09,359 Speaker 1: were showing himselfies to explain why they wanted the surgery. 498 00:26:09,400 --> 00:26:11,880 Speaker 1: So he started taking photos of them from the proper 499 00:26:12,000 --> 00:26:14,840 Speaker 1: portrait distance, which is actually five feet away, just to 500 00:26:14,840 --> 00:26:17,200 Speaker 1: give him a better sense of what their face actually 501 00:26:17,240 --> 00:26:20,760 Speaker 1: looks like. And as Boris put it, quote, I want 502 00:26:20,840 --> 00:26:23,160 Speaker 1: them to realize that when they take a selfie there 503 00:26:23,160 --> 00:26:27,760 Speaker 1: in essence looking into a portable fun house mirror. You 504 00:26:27,800 --> 00:26:29,680 Speaker 1: know that. I do think the elephant in the room 505 00:26:29,760 --> 00:26:32,120 Speaker 1: that we really haven't touched on is that with any 506 00:26:32,160 --> 00:26:34,920 Speaker 1: of the drawbacks we've been talking about, it's women who 507 00:26:34,920 --> 00:26:38,040 Speaker 1: are disproportionately affected by them, because when you look at 508 00:26:38,040 --> 00:26:41,520 Speaker 1: the stance for plastic surgery, eighty five to of the 509 00:26:41,560 --> 00:26:45,840 Speaker 1: patients are women, depending on you know, the specific procedure, right, 510 00:26:45,880 --> 00:26:47,960 Speaker 1: And the thing is people probably aren't too surprised to 511 00:26:48,000 --> 00:26:50,159 Speaker 1: hear that, Like you always hear about how there's, you know, 512 00:26:50,320 --> 00:26:53,320 Speaker 1: an enormous pressure on women to look like other women 513 00:26:53,359 --> 00:26:57,040 Speaker 1: do in movies or magazines or Instagram. And since those 514 00:26:57,080 --> 00:27:01,000 Speaker 1: images are all overproduced and filtered and death from the photoshopped, 515 00:27:01,320 --> 00:27:02,879 Speaker 1: a lot of us end up devoting a lot of 516 00:27:02,920 --> 00:27:06,320 Speaker 1: time and energy chasing something unattainable. Yeah, you're right, and 517 00:27:06,320 --> 00:27:08,879 Speaker 1: it's a legitimate source of pain. And in fact, I 518 00:27:08,920 --> 00:27:11,639 Speaker 1: was reading about this study and Scientific American where the 519 00:27:11,680 --> 00:27:14,680 Speaker 1: researchers found that women who believe they can become more 520 00:27:14,720 --> 00:27:18,680 Speaker 1: beautiful with effort have a higher risk of developing appearance 521 00:27:18,720 --> 00:27:21,760 Speaker 1: based anxiety, and so they're more likely to show an 522 00:27:21,760 --> 00:27:25,840 Speaker 1: interest in cosmetic surgery as a result of this. And 523 00:27:25,920 --> 00:27:27,840 Speaker 1: so that wasn't the case for women who have more 524 00:27:27,960 --> 00:27:30,840 Speaker 1: fixed views on their beauty. Yeah, no, that's right, and 525 00:27:30,880 --> 00:27:32,919 Speaker 1: you know you might expect it wasn't the case for 526 00:27:33,000 --> 00:27:35,840 Speaker 1: men either. But what I did find interesting about this 527 00:27:35,920 --> 00:27:39,040 Speaker 1: is is that believing we can improve a trait really 528 00:27:39,119 --> 00:27:42,240 Speaker 1: can help us achieve that goal. So, just to take 529 00:27:42,280 --> 00:27:46,399 Speaker 1: an example here, people who think that intelligence or creativity 530 00:27:46,440 --> 00:27:50,240 Speaker 1: are malleable, they tend to improve in those areas over time, 531 00:27:50,520 --> 00:27:53,200 Speaker 1: compared to people who don't believe those traits can be changed. 532 00:27:54,320 --> 00:27:56,879 Speaker 1: That's weird. So having an eye towards improvement is actually 533 00:27:56,880 --> 00:27:58,840 Speaker 1: a good thing for the most part. I mean, that 534 00:27:58,920 --> 00:28:01,440 Speaker 1: seems to be the case, but it mostly comes down 535 00:28:01,440 --> 00:28:04,359 Speaker 1: to how realistic your goal is. So, according to the 536 00:28:04,359 --> 00:28:08,160 Speaker 1: co author of the study, your name is Professor Melissa Berkeley, 537 00:28:08,520 --> 00:28:11,080 Speaker 1: here's what she says. She says, prior research has shown 538 00:28:11,080 --> 00:28:14,880 Speaker 1: that malleable beliefs increase motivation, which is good if we're 539 00:28:14,880 --> 00:28:17,600 Speaker 1: talking about being motivated to stay in school or improve 540 00:28:17,640 --> 00:28:21,080 Speaker 1: somebody's math skills. But when the domain is as unrealistic 541 00:28:21,119 --> 00:28:24,680 Speaker 1: as the beauty standards we have for women today, increasing 542 00:28:24,680 --> 00:28:29,480 Speaker 1: motivation may lead to harmful behaviors. So basically, if someone's 543 00:28:29,520 --> 00:28:32,440 Speaker 1: going to alter their appearance, you know, through a procedure 544 00:28:32,520 --> 00:28:34,600 Speaker 1: or surgery, they should make sure they're doing it for 545 00:28:34,640 --> 00:28:36,640 Speaker 1: the right reasons, not not because of how a selfie 546 00:28:36,680 --> 00:28:38,960 Speaker 1: turned out or because of the way a celebrity looks 547 00:28:38,960 --> 00:28:41,760 Speaker 1: on screen, but because they want the outside to better 548 00:28:41,760 --> 00:28:44,880 Speaker 1: reflect how they feel inside. Yeah, and you know, cosmetic 549 00:28:44,920 --> 00:28:48,280 Speaker 1: surgery can be empowering in the same way as reconstructive surgery. 550 00:28:48,320 --> 00:28:50,520 Speaker 1: I mean, you know, namely is a way to reclaim 551 00:28:50,720 --> 00:28:53,760 Speaker 1: or reassert your own identity. And that doesn't mean that 552 00:28:53,800 --> 00:28:56,520 Speaker 1: who you are should be completely wrapped up and how 553 00:28:56,560 --> 00:28:59,800 Speaker 1: you look, but being comfortable in your own skin. It's 554 00:29:00,040 --> 00:29:02,520 Speaker 1: you know, it's important, and it's crucial for mental health too. 555 00:29:03,120 --> 00:29:05,600 Speaker 1: And if you'd rather just dabble in a lower key approach, 556 00:29:05,680 --> 00:29:08,440 Speaker 1: you can always try facer size. I mean, if it 557 00:29:08,480 --> 00:29:11,800 Speaker 1: works for Trystan, it can work for anybody. I mean, 558 00:29:11,880 --> 00:29:15,800 Speaker 1: he looks younger every single minute, like he's Benjamin Bunding 559 00:29:15,880 --> 00:29:19,160 Speaker 1: right in front of our eyes. All Right, well, that's 560 00:29:19,200 --> 00:29:22,320 Speaker 1: probably enough unsolicited beauty talk for one day, but we 561 00:29:22,480 --> 00:29:25,200 Speaker 1: still have plenty left to chat about him. Today's fact off, 562 00:29:25,280 --> 00:29:35,959 Speaker 1: so let's get to it. According to Colors magazine, Iran 563 00:29:36,160 --> 00:29:39,160 Speaker 1: is the nose job capital of the world, and apparently 564 00:29:39,200 --> 00:29:41,960 Speaker 1: the procedure is expensive enough that it carries a bit 565 00:29:42,000 --> 00:29:44,840 Speaker 1: of a status cloud with it. So um Colors puts 566 00:29:44,840 --> 00:29:48,040 Speaker 1: it this way, people will wear their post surgery bandages 567 00:29:48,040 --> 00:29:50,640 Speaker 1: for months like a badge of honor. Some even wear 568 00:29:50,680 --> 00:29:54,000 Speaker 1: the bandages without undergoing the surgery. Al Right, well, there 569 00:29:54,000 --> 00:29:56,760 Speaker 1: are all sorts of people who are obsessed with celebrities 570 00:29:56,800 --> 00:29:59,480 Speaker 1: and get plastic surgery to look like them. You see 571 00:29:59,520 --> 00:30:02,240 Speaker 1: stories of about them all over the internet, of course, 572 00:30:02,280 --> 00:30:04,360 Speaker 1: and you know people paying to look more like Justin 573 00:30:04,400 --> 00:30:07,600 Speaker 1: Bieber or Kylie Jenner or Lindsay Lohan. But you know, 574 00:30:07,640 --> 00:30:10,960 Speaker 1: one of the most surprising cases is this Chinese writer 575 00:30:11,120 --> 00:30:14,520 Speaker 1: and super fan who has spent almost a quarter of 576 00:30:14,560 --> 00:30:18,200 Speaker 1: a million dollars to get ten surgeries to look like 577 00:30:18,280 --> 00:30:23,719 Speaker 1: guess who Williams Shakespeare. And apparently the only place he 578 00:30:23,760 --> 00:30:27,280 Speaker 1: refuses to spend is the haircut. For some reason, he 579 00:30:27,320 --> 00:30:30,840 Speaker 1: doesn't want the bards receding hairline, but he's been willing 580 00:30:30,880 --> 00:30:32,920 Speaker 1: to grow his hair out just to kind of amplify 581 00:30:33,040 --> 00:30:37,400 Speaker 1: the look. That's great, you know. Weirdly enough, there's a 582 00:30:37,440 --> 00:30:41,000 Speaker 1: surgery to switch your left and right fingerprints by slicing 583 00:30:41,040 --> 00:30:43,560 Speaker 1: them off and grafting them on the other And I 584 00:30:43,600 --> 00:30:46,080 Speaker 1: guess authorities only found out about this in two thousand 585 00:30:46,120 --> 00:30:48,040 Speaker 1: nine when this woman who had been kicked out of 586 00:30:48,120 --> 00:30:51,400 Speaker 1: Japan for overstaying her visa re entered the country and 587 00:30:51,440 --> 00:30:53,880 Speaker 1: then was caught for a different crime. Her name was 588 00:30:53,960 --> 00:30:57,240 Speaker 1: Lynn Wrong. She paid fifteen dollars for the surgery to 589 00:30:57,320 --> 00:31:01,120 Speaker 1: mask her fingerprints and it's been dubbed Japan's first biometric 590 00:31:01,240 --> 00:31:04,960 Speaker 1: fraud crime. All right, well, did you know the inventor 591 00:31:05,080 --> 00:31:08,520 Speaker 1: of botox, who was this opthalmologist named Alan Scott, never 592 00:31:08,600 --> 00:31:11,800 Speaker 1: really cared about wrinkles. So he had this patient who 593 00:31:11,840 --> 00:31:15,160 Speaker 1: had undergone three surgeries for double vision, and this was, 594 00:31:15,520 --> 00:31:18,080 Speaker 1: you know, his way of using like almost like this 595 00:31:18,240 --> 00:31:21,600 Speaker 1: natural duct tape to patch up the eye. So Scott 596 00:31:21,640 --> 00:31:24,000 Speaker 1: says he isn't sure who was more nervous about the 597 00:31:24,040 --> 00:31:27,680 Speaker 1: experimental treatment, him giving it or the patient receiving it. 598 00:31:28,120 --> 00:31:31,440 Speaker 1: But once it was successful, Scott sold the concept to Allergan, 599 00:31:31,480 --> 00:31:36,960 Speaker 1: who immediately realized the skin smoothing benefits. Mhmm, So here's 600 00:31:36,960 --> 00:31:40,080 Speaker 1: something I hadn't realized. Animal plastic surgeries are actually a thing, 601 00:31:40,440 --> 00:31:43,560 Speaker 1: and people have been getting Tommy talks, eyelid lifts, and 602 00:31:43,680 --> 00:31:46,840 Speaker 1: laser nostril procedures for their dogs for a while now. 603 00:31:47,160 --> 00:31:50,120 Speaker 1: And the treatments aren't purely cosmetic. The treatments actually prevent 604 00:31:50,240 --> 00:31:54,280 Speaker 1: bacterial infections and helped the dogs with wrinkled noses breathe better. 605 00:31:54,840 --> 00:31:57,480 Speaker 1: It tends to be a booming industry. Apparently, in two 606 00:31:57,520 --> 00:32:01,200 Speaker 1: thousand eleven, people spent sixty two million dollars on plastic 607 00:32:01,240 --> 00:32:03,840 Speaker 1: surgery for their pets. But I'm actually gonna tell you 608 00:32:03,880 --> 00:32:06,080 Speaker 1: about one story where it made a huge difference. And 609 00:32:06,200 --> 00:32:08,760 Speaker 1: this was at the Vancouver Aquarium. There was this one 610 00:32:08,800 --> 00:32:12,440 Speaker 1: eyed yellow tail rock fish and the vets they're noticed. 611 00:32:12,560 --> 00:32:15,240 Speaker 1: It was getting bullied by the other fish in the tank, 612 00:32:15,320 --> 00:32:18,040 Speaker 1: like they'd steal its food, they'd attack it from that side, 613 00:32:18,480 --> 00:32:21,400 Speaker 1: and it was just low confidence, I guess. But the 614 00:32:21,480 --> 00:32:24,920 Speaker 1: doctor sewed this big, bright yellow prosthetic eye into the 615 00:32:24,960 --> 00:32:28,360 Speaker 1: socket and now the fish is fatter, he's doing well, 616 00:32:28,440 --> 00:32:32,360 Speaker 1: and he isn't getting bullied anymore. Well, that's a great story. Actually, 617 00:32:32,360 --> 00:32:34,240 Speaker 1: I think that's good enough. I think I'm gonna let 618 00:32:34,240 --> 00:32:37,840 Speaker 1: you take the fact off today. Mango. Well, I'm happy 619 00:32:37,840 --> 00:32:41,000 Speaker 1: about it. Thank you. Well that is it for today's show. 620 00:32:41,000 --> 00:32:43,040 Speaker 1: If you've got facts or topics you want to share, 621 00:32:43,120 --> 00:32:45,040 Speaker 1: you know, we always love hearing from you at Part 622 00:32:45,040 --> 00:32:47,520 Speaker 1: Time Genius and How Stuff Works dot com or find 623 00:32:47,560 --> 00:32:50,160 Speaker 1: us on Facebook or Twitter. But from Gabe, Tristan, Mango 624 00:32:50,240 --> 00:33:02,480 Speaker 1: and me, thanks so much for listening to the Bod