Venezuela's newest enemy: Breast lifts

Blame for the boom in such operations here, Mr. Ch?vez said on State television over the weekend, rested with the doctors who "convinces some women that if they do not have large bosoms, they should feel bad." He said there was a "monstrous thing" that poor women seeking breast lifts when they had trouble making ends meet.

"What is this, friend?" Mr. Ch?vez declared its viewers.

Mr. Ch?vez's comments come at a time when Venezuela has emerged as one of the world's leading markets for breast augmentation. Between 30 000 and 40 000 women here to undergo the procedure each year according to the calculations of the Venezuelan society of plastic surgeons.

Signs in Caracas advertise bank loans to surgery. Gossip Blogs speculate about the improvements made to contestants in the Miss Venezuela ... Last year, tried a candidate to the national Assembly, Gustavo Rojas, to finance his campaign by raffling of breast cancer elevator (he lost anyway).

"I've never seen more silicone elsewhere," said Mireia Sallar?s, a filmmaker from Spain that focus on feminist issues and are working on a project about Venezuela, the newspaper Tal Cual.

Mr. Ch?vez regretted the amount of money spent on cosmetic breast surgery, there are also a darker side with procedures with reports of surgical mistakes resulting in death in some patients. A 20-year-old woman, Paola Rios, died in Caracas this month due to complications from breast augmentation surgery.

Mr. Ch?vez standing on a tripod in Venezuelan popular culture urges swift reactions from some quarters, particularly the medical profession. "I think not enough should be no kind of discrimination of these aesthetic procedures," said Dr. Ram?n Zapata Sirvent, leading plastic surgeon here.

In an acerbic leader on the subject on Monday compared the opposition newspaper El Nacional Mr. Ch?vez to Colonel Muammar el-Qaddafi, the Libyan leader, who regard Mr. Ch?vez as a friend. "Now, this obsolete militaristic, coarse, repressive stance on women's freedom to do what they want with their bodies," said El Nacional.

President, however, made it clear that breast augmentation did not square well with his revolutionary priorities. He said that among thousands of letters he receives from supporters, arrived asking for his help for a breast cancer Elevator, which would cost as much as $ 7,000. "Of course I had to reject it," he said.

State media in agreement with the President on the subject. The State newspaper the Correo del Orinoco claimed this month that plastic surgery "as common as dentist appointments, and it is not unusual for wealthy parents proudly buy his 15-year-old daughters breast implants for" come of age "birthday presents."

Maria Eugenia Diaz contributed reporting.

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Venezuela’s Newest Enemy: Breast Lifts

Blame for the boom in such surgeries here, Mr. Ch?vez said on state television over the weekend, rested with doctors who “convince some women that if they don’t have some big bosoms, they should feel bad.” He said it was a “monstrous thing” that poor women were seeking breast lifts when they had trouble making ends meet.

“What is this, friend?” Mr. Ch?vez exclaimed to his viewers.

Mr. Ch?vez’s comments come at a time when Venezuela has emerged as one of the world’s leading markets for breast augmentation. Between 30,000 and 40,000 women here undergo the procedure each year, according to estimates by the Venezuelan Society of Plastic Surgeons.

Billboards in Caracas advertise bank loans for the surgery. Gossip blogs speculate on the enhancements done to contestants in the Miss Venezuela pageant. Last year, one candidate for the National Assembly, Gustavo Rojas, tried to finance his campaign by raffling off a breast lift (he lost anyway).

“I’ve never seen more silicone anywhere else,” Mireia Sallar?s, a filmmaker from Spain who focuses on feminist issues and is working on a project about Venezuela, told the newspaper Tal Cual.

While Mr. Ch?vez lamented the amount of money spent on cosmetic breast surgery, there is also a darker side to the procedures, with reports of surgical mistakes resulting in the deaths of some patients. One 20-year-old woman, Paola R?os, died in Caracas this month because of complications from breast augmentation surgery.

Mr. Ch?vez’s stand on such a fixture in Venezuelan popular culture prompted swift reactions from some quarters, notably the medical profession. “I don’t think there should be any type of discrimination against these aesthetic procedures,” said Dr. Ram?n Zapata Sirvent, a leading plastic surgeon here.

In an acerbic editorial on the subject on Monday, the opposition newspaper El Nacional compared Mr. Ch?vez to Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, the Libyan leader, who regards Mr. Ch?vez as a friend. “Now comes this antiquated, militaristic, coarse, repressive attitude on the freedom of women to do what they want with their bodies,” El Nacional said.

The president, however, made it clear that breast augmentation did not square well with his revolutionary priorities. He said that among the thousands of letters he receives from supporters, one arrived asking for his help for a breast lift, which could cost as much as $7,000. “Of course I had to reject it,” he said.

State media outlets agreed with the president on the subject. The state newspaper Correo del Orinoco contended this month that plastic surgery was “as common as dentist appointments and it is not unusual for wealthy parents to proudly buy their 15-year-old daughters breast implants for ‘coming of age’ birthday presents.”

Mar?a Eugenia D?az contributed reporting.

View the original article here