Competitive edge: Go under the knife, keep your job

In a youth-obsessed world, more South African men are going under the knife to keep looking sharp, writes Shanthini Naidoo

Are you a guy who wants to stay ahead in the workplace? Join the growing posse going under the knife to keep that competitive edge.

Men who want to look better in the boardroom or even in selfies aren't just dressing well and toning their muscles at the gym - they are turning to medical procedures for help.

"This is not a trend only among metrosexual men who are meticulous about their appearance," said Sandton plastic surgeon Dr Ridwan Mia. "Patients vary from regular family guys - fathers and grandfathers - to executives and professionals, like doctors and lawyers.

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"Definitely men who work in sales and service industries - estate agents and insurance salesmen - are having procedures done. They have to compete with men who are younger, where people who look fresher, more healthy and less tired give a better impression to potential buyers."

He said that often his patients want to feel good about themselves, particularly due to social media pressure. "I have certainly had male patients saying 'When I take a selfie my chin is too big, or my eyelids are heavy, my nose is too big'. It affects men as much as women."

According to London's Daily Telegraph, studies show the number of men going under the knife is not just increasing dramatically, but high-profile male celebrities are no longer shy about admitting what they have had done.

Last October - while on stage picking up an award, no less - 43-year-old singer Robbie Williams admitted to having had "some fillers, and some Botox" and, just for good measure, "something done to my chin, which means I can't move my f****** forehead".

Reality-TV presenter Simon Cowell, 57, has compared getting Botox to brushing his teeth, and Cold Feet actor James Nesbitt, 52, cheerfully admitted that his hair transplant was "ridiculous, but it's horrible going bald. Anyone who says it isn't is lying."

"Losing my hair was practically an obsession. But also, I'm an actor, so I'm in the public eye a lot and I really felt that my hair loss could affect my career prospects."

The number of men getting cosmetic surgery in Britain has risen by more than 110% since 2000, according to the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons.

In South Africa, Mia said the most popular surgeries included:

• Blepharoplasty or removal of droopy skin at the eyes (R35,000);

• Rhinoplasty, or nose jobs (R40,000 to R60,000);

• Gynaecomastia or reduction of man boobs (moobs) (R25,000);

• Liposuction or removal of fat from love handles or tummy (R35,000 to R65,000); and

• Otoplasty, when the ears are reshaped or pinned back (R10,000 to R15,000).

Then there are nonmedical treatments such as threading, where the skin is injected with chemical reinforcers to appear taut, laser treatments for smoother skin, hair implants and more.

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Unlike their international counterparts, not many South African men would publicly admit to any of the work.

One fan of aesthetic treatments declined to be named because he has a public profile. "Many people comment on how I look and my wife also has had a few things done, which we don't need to share with our social circle."

But he said the regular sessions at Medi-Sculpt Clinic had changed his life. "From a self-esteem point of view, it made me feel better and more confident when I have to speak on a world stage, if I am lecturing or appearing on television. I haven't had acne since starting the treatment. It started off as treatment for age spots, which are gone. I use a Fraxel laser which causes the collagen levels to rise, and encourages growth of new collagen.

"After the first treatment my face went into baby-skin mode. I had a horrible double chin which is not there any more thanks to Botox.

"I do a chemical peel once a month, but I don't have to use expensive cosmetics to maintain it. I do take vitamins and I am healthy, with regards to diet and exercise. I think personalised cosmetic assessments are important for confidence," he said.

For some, it is the body that needs work.

Plastic surgeon Dr Chetan Patel said his patients wanted to take their shirts off at the beach and go to the gym with confidence.

"The gynaecomastia is popular because you cannot fix [man boobs] with exercise. It is breast tissue you can't get rid of no matter how much you work out.

"These men won't take their tops off at the beach or wear a tight T-shirt at gym. Some have it as a physiological condition where the breast grows during adolescence. They are often ashamed of it and once we assess the patient's psychological status and do the surgery if they qualify, they are very happy."

Patel added that frustration arises because of unfounded advice that exercise can fix body conditions.

"People think toning the muscles will fix bingo arms, [flabby upper arms] but that is not the case. Gym and cardio gets rid of excess fat, not excess skin. Liposuction is meant for stubborn diet- and exercise-resistant fat. Sit-ups won't help reduce that type of fat on the tummy."

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He said South African men were definitely more open to the idea of plastic surgery for aesthetic purposes. "Locality more than the type of person might determine who wants to do this. High-flying execs wanting to look better in the workplace would be more open to it, versus a Free State farmer or game ranger who loves his weathered skin."

Patel said those with narcissistic complexes or who have unrealistic expectations were excluded from surgery at the psychological-assessment stage. "There are a certain proportion of men who want to look like they have got a body builder-type of chest and that is not what the surgery or result entails. We have to screen patients carefully."

For those who do have the treatment, it is a confidence booster. "The patients feel great that they not longer have to be aware of this issue, which they might have thought about for a long time. Whether it is a perceived problem or not, it is real for them. Love handles or muffin tops, or in older men, the eye bags, they feel better after the procedure."

Mia said that some surgeries were functional. "For some patients with prominent drooping eyelids, the motivation is that they cannot see properly. Others with prominent bags may get weary of questions of whether they are sick or tired, and we can correct that quite nicely and easily."

He said patients ranged from teenagers to the elderly, but were generally from the middle- to upper- income group. Many more men would have procedures if they were more affordable, he said. "Many of our patients save up, or finance the surgery over a year or two years.

"What I have seen, which is a little worrying, is an increase in botched procedures, by GPs or people not trained to do plastic surgery. Noninvasive liposuction, for instance, does have a degree of surgical elements.

"People need to make sure their surgeon is registered with the correct authorities and associations. They assume a procedure will cost less than it would at a qualified doctor, but that isn't the case and actually the complications can make it more costly," said Mia.

He said plastic surgeons had to field some strange requests, such as insertion of silicone beads under penile skin. "We don't do these sorts of things, which could be dangerous. And we have to be careful of men who see things in the media and ask for them.

"Patients have to be counselled, for instance how rhinoplasty on a female nose won't work on them, or making the nose too thin would look odd."

Dr Daniel Sister, a provider of cosmetic treatments in the UK, confirmed the trend: "Without a doubt, men are getting more work done ... We're living longer, we're having second and third marriages and it's become so acceptable for men to take a greater interest in their looks.

"But perhaps the biggest motivator for 50-something men is the job market, which is youth-driven. These men don't want to get left behind. If they're in a client-facing job, or competing with younger colleagues, there's a commercial edge to looking a bit younger. Banking in particular is very competitive. In the past, a middle-aged man would proudly have a paunch, now he might get Botox."

— Additional reporting by The Daily Telegraph, London