Is It Unethical Not To Disclose The Collagen In Your Lips?
Posted by: Erin Flaherty
Filed in:
news
11:00AM, Tuesday August 4th 2009
For better or worse, plastic surgery—both in its most extreme (Jocelyn Wildenstein) and subtler (Megan Fox) forms—is fully entrenched in modern day society. In fact, Botox gatherings have replaced Tupperware parties, celebrities flaunt face-lifts on the red carpet and it’s become downright acceptable in plenty of circles. But no matter how you feel about plastic surgery, a recent paper that appeared in the Journal of Evolution and Technology brings up an angle we hadn’t considered. Reports The New York Times today:
…the doctoral candidate says plastic surgery throws a monkey wrench (sorry) into the Darwinian process of selecting the best genes to proliferate the species — since people who otherwise might not have been perceived as desirable mates for procreation allow themselves to be perceived as desirable enough to pass on their genes.
Let’s take a closer look.
Of course, before everyone had a boob job, the more benign question might have been, is wearing a Wonderbra dishonest in terms of attracting a potential mate? But unlike the inevitable removal of lingerie, no one has to disclose a brow lift or synthetically-pillow-y lips, if they don’t want to. Fair enough. But let’s not ignore the real (and somewhat infuriating) elephant in the room here: Clearly, this is an ethical issue that lays squarely on women’s shoulders. After all, it’s common knowledge that the percentage of females getting plastic surgery is much higher than among men. (According to recent American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery statistics, women had 92 percent of all cosmetic procedures.) The message here is clear and it is threatening: We know you’re cheating ladies, and if you don’t disclose this (arguably?) personal information, you are a liar and you will be held accountable when our babies are uglier than we expected.
So I guess the question is, is it deceitful to subconsciously convey the idea that you’ll pass on thin thigh-ed genetics to your unborn children after you’ve gotten liposuction? And if you don’t disclose alterations, is it tantamount to hiding an STD? Could one simply argue that we have evolved far enough as a species to put far less emphasis on physicality than ever before, while at the same time, there is more emphasis on modified appearances than ever? Most of all, should we draft a new social contract in agreement that women (and the odd man with the Botox or calf lift), confess any and all procedures on the first date? It’s quite the conundrum.
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Kiki T
wrote on August 4 2009 @ 10:18 am: [report]
Thank god for pheromones!!!!! They don’t lie…and I so faced this in the past, as in went out with a guy that revealed he had a nose job after a few times of hanging out. he was attractive, and most likely regardless of the rhinoplasty, but yeah it just felt like such a lie and SOOOO CHEESY…but it wasn’t like I was so into him anyway…but that factoid was the ultimate clincher in the demise of that love connection…but if I did already really and truly liked him, it would of been something I would of accepted…as that is always the case. if you truly like someone, all rules fly out the window…
Penelope09
wrote on August 4 2009 @ 10:37 am: [report]
Saying you absolutely need to disclose that information for the sake of the aesthetic appeal of your partner’s unborn children is kind of ridiculous. Plus, it implies that looks are all that go into choosing who you’re going to have children with. Call me an optimist, but I still believe that chemistry between two people isn’t entirely based on looks, and that what holds together a long term relationship isn’t based much on it at all.
Carman
wrote on August 4 2009 @ 11:16 am: [report]
I do think that you need to disclose this information. Maybe not on the first date. Why tell all of your secrets if you aren’t even going to see the guy again? At the same time, protecting your genes is important.
When I first started dating my fiancee and the talk turned to having kids and moving forward, you bet your bottom dollar I looked not just at his build, bone structure, beauty and his family’s. I think that I was blessed with great genes. We all know that it is really hard to be fat and or ugly in America. If I don’t have those genes, why would I want to disadvantage my unborn child by reproducing with someone who does?
So yea, you should make it clear up front when you are talking children. If your sig other looks at your Jr. High photos and still loves you and wants to have kids with you, then you have struck gold. If that person doesn’t, he is just going to be mad when the kid pops out!
Lilypie
wrote on August 4 2009 @ 12:15 pm: [report]
Oh please. Beautiful, unaltered couples can have ugly babies too. I’ve seen them. While I think there is something strange about not revealing something like a past major surgery to the person you are marrying, I think that’s more about honesty about your life experiences than pre-procreation disclosure.
Chebs
wrote on August 4 2009 @ 12:26 pm: [report]
Shouldn’t it be more important that people talk about family medical histories rather than plastic surgery before making a baby? In my opinion anyway, knowing if the child might have a chance of developing cancer is more important that if the child has a chance of getting a big nose. Silly, pointless article from the NYT.
BlueVibe
wrote on August 5 2009 @ 09:34 am: [report]
Um, if you can’t trust somebody enough to tell them that you’ve been surgically altered, or you wouldn’t like somebody as much if you found out that their looks weren’t entirely genetic, you probably shouldn’t be marrying and/or having children with them in the first place.
Besides, “fat and ugly” is a matter of opinion, and weight is more complex than simply genes. I’m never going to be rail-thin, but I could be thinner if I took better care of myself. But I also would never marry somebody whose love for me was so contingent on my size.
For the record: My lips are indeed “pillowy,” but they’re real.