The Zoom Effect Its You But Ugly

The story that is trending everywhere on beauty and lifestyle sites is that ‘Zoomplasty' is here.   You are in a business meeting on Zoom and you see your face in close up and you don't like what you see.  Whether it is the overlarge nose or the eyes with bags or the pronounced crow's feet or the thin unkissable lips it's you but ugly.

zoom girl

I don’t think it’s especially vain of me or anyone else to worry about our on-camera grotesquery; video conferencing awakens the vanity in all of us, It is this vanity that has been the major driving force in the  Zoom boom that is hitting cosmetic surgery clinics this season

Members of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons report increased demand for cosmetic enhancements, especially Botox injections and fillers that erase lines, wrinkles, crow’s feet and all those telltale signs of ageing on the face. Patients also are inquiring about more invasive surgical procedures, including tummy tucks, breast augmentations and liposuction.  The same phenomenon is occurring in the UK, France and Germany.  All the surgeries I have spoken to this September tell me that ‘Zoomplasty' is here to stay.

The five most popular minimally invasive procedures: Botulinum toxin type A, soft tissue fillers, chemical peels, laser hair removal and intense pulsed light treatment, a skin treatment that works similarly to laser therapy.

“It’s been an increasing trend for years now,” said Dr Lynn Jeffers, a California plastic surgeon and president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons in an interview with the Star Tribune.

zoom cosmetics
Dr Lynn Jeffers

“I think part of it is … some people aren’t quite ready to have a procedure like a face-lift, yet in the meantime, they can use Botox and fillers and peels and lasers and all the things that are out there, minimally invasive procedures, as a bridge. But the pandemic clearly has picked up the pace.”

“One attraction', says Jeffers, “is that people can spend post-surgery in privacy.” They think, “This is a great time because now I can recover at home and still work and (no one has) to see me recovering.”

I know that I sometimes hesitate to click the video feed button when I enter a Zoom room.  How is my thumbnail looking this morning?    I guess it's nice to know I'm part of a trend.