As medical science advances, cures, vaccines, and life-saving procedures that were unthinkable in the past have become a reality. Of course, there are frivolous uses for this technology as well.
State-of-the-art equipment can now provide fake abs for the lazy and more promising palm lines for the superstitious. These five procedures show that people will do just about anything to get a leg up on others.
1. Eye Jewelry
Having small pieces of jewelry implanted into the eye was a minor fad in Europe, and now it’s coming to the United States. A New York City-based surgeon, Dr. Emil Chynn performed one such surgery, and ever since, his office has been fielding dozens of calls about the unusual procedure.
While Dr. Chynn insists that the operation is safe, there are skeptics. Dr. Philip Rizzuto of the American Academy of Ophthalmology says that the procedure could cause bleeding under part of the eye. Also, if someone received a blow to the eye, it could move the jewelry causing damage to the surrounding tissue.
2. Abdominal Implants
Finally there’s a way to get a six pack without having to put down your six pack. If you’re too busy for a workout and diet, you can still look like body builder.
Surgeons can use liposuction to remove some fat stores, and etch into other layers of fat, creating the illusion of muscles. To enhance the look one step further, implants can be added throughout the stomach to create a well-defined six-pack.
3. Palm Line Surgery
Palm reading holds a great amount of sway in Japan. It’s not uncommon for people to shell out $50 or $100 to have their palm read there.
For those who don’t like their supposed fate, there’s now a plastic surgery. You can have palm lines altered with an electric scalpel, which leaves scars that resemble palm lines. The surgery costs around $850, but some palm readers say that this will not change the fate of the patient.
4. Permanent Color Contacts
If you don’t like the eye color you were born with, you could always get colored contacts. Lately, people have been taking that idea to a whole new level.
The FDA initially approved permanent intraocular implants as a means to protect sensitive eyes from sunlight. Now that the procedure has been successfully performed so many times, people are using it simply to change their eye color. The BrightOcular website offers implants in sea green, ice gray, baby blue, and many other colors.
5. Beard Transplant
Most men wake up each morning and dutifully shave the stubble that has grown on their faces since the previous morning. Others happily let their facial hair grow out into a stylish beard. There is a third category of men who yearn for a beard, but simply can’t grow one.
Thanks to cutting-edge technology, people can now get facial hair transplants. Surgeons transplant hair follicles from other places on the body (like the back of the head) onto the face of the patient. Then, they can shave every morning like the rest of us!
