Zach Dr. lepore

Dr. Vincent Lepore is certified by the American board of plastic surgery and is a member of the American society of plastic surgeons.  He claims that plastic surgery is not only for the wealthy. “The majority of people who undergo any type of cosmetic surgery, are working adults of moderate income”. He claims that most of the time his clients just save up their money as if they were buying another significant purchase.

This source is not the best for my paper because this professionals opinion is biased.

Lepore, V. (2013, October 10). Cosmetic surgery costs. San Jose plastic surgery Info by Vincent

Lepore MD. Retrieved February 18, 2014, from http://www.sanjoseplasticsurgeryinfo.com/cosmetic-surgery/cosmetic-surgery-costs/

Zach Dr Frances opinion

Dr. Frances is a professional speaker with a career in medicine. She also consults with patients on integrated health, second opinions, stress and life management, diet and lifestyle, and nutritional medicine. She claims that parents should support their kids if they want to receive cosmetic surgery. This way they at least talk about it with their parents and do not make a bad decision. She claims that the teens do not need any stress from the parents and the best thing parents can do is try to get the teen to wait a little bit so that they may reconsider. She also claims that cosmetic surgery is starting to become more widely accepted in school.

This source is useful for my paper because it gives me another professional opinion.

Teenagers and cosmetic surgery | Dr Frances Pitsilis. (n.d.). Teenagers and cosmetic surgery | Dr

Frances Pitsilis. Retrieved February 18, 2014, from http://www.drfrances.co.nz/

teenagers-cosmetic-surgery.html

Dr. Ted Gish Interview

Ted Gish is a Biology professor at Madonna University. Gish had known former students of his who had undergone cosmetic surgery before the age of eighteen. He understood the pressures teenagers face from peers and society, especially with the Internet being a 24/7 reminder of famous models and actors who portray an 'ideal look'. However, he still believed that teenagers should wait until they truly know that they want the surgery, or wait until they reach adulthood to see if the thought passed. Gish also believed that the final decision on receiving the surgery should come from a combination of both the adult and the teenager’s thoughts. He thought there was a point to where the adult should take more authority on the matter considering the teenager was not yet an adult. Gish did not know of any biological implications on how the surgery could affect a body that is not fully matured; therefore, he compared plastic surgery nowadays to that of the first surgeries performed. He stated, “black and white photos stay forever; however, color fades. Who knows how long surgeries nowadays will last”. His comparison provided insight on how the past has told us how early surgeries have ended up but not enough time has passed for society to see how long the new surgery procedures will last (T. Gish, personal communication, February 17, 2014).
This interview provided me with a chemistry professor's opinion on whether teenagers should have surgery before the age of eighteen. 

Dr. Veronica Riha Interview

Veronica Riha is a biology professor at Madonna University. She did not know anyone personally who had cosmetic surgery as a teenager. Her opinion on the matter was a definite no. She also did not know of any biological implications on how the surgery could affect a body that is not fully mature. When asked if she believed if the final decision should be the teenager’s choice or the adult, she firmly said that the adult should make the decision. On the matter concerning whether the surgery would actually improve one’s self-esteem and confidence, she replied, “No, if you are uncomfortable with your body you will never be truly happy with how you look. No one is perfect”. Riha believed that if you aren’t happy with how you look before the surgery, you will probably find things after the surgery you won’t like. Everyone needs to just come to terms with themselves and make the most of it. There was no point in worrying about how you looked when you are not the only one who may not like how you feel about your personal features. Teenagers were always finding things wrong with how they look now that there are so many pressures from society (V. Riha, personal communication, February 13, 2014).
This interview provided me with an opinion from a biology professor about her beliefs on the subject of teenagers undergoing surgery before the age of eighteen. 

Dr. Mary Mitsch Interview

Dr. Mary Mitsch  is a nursing professor at Madonna University. Although Mitsch  had not known anyone personally who had cosmetic surgery as a teenager, she believed that, “it is terrible that culture puts pressure on teens and that they can’t be happy with their body image”. The social construction of perfection put too much pressure on teenagers. She feared the surgery could be life threatening if the patient reacted poorly to the anesthesia used. When asked whether the final decision should be made by the teen or the adult, she replied that since they are only teenagers, the adult should be the only one allowed to make the final decision. Mitsch believed that it should stay that way. She felt that self-esteem came from within so the surgery would only provide a momentary boost in self-esteem. She also believed that self-esteem is something that one works for and earns in life; it is not something one can buy. Her opinion on how receiving the surgery could affect a pre-mature body at an early age biologically was that it would cause future problems, and the patients had no idea of knowing what may happen later on in life due to the surgery they had at such an early age. She concluded that depression should be considered a medical reason for thinking about receiving cosmetic surgery (M. Mitsch, personal communication, February 17, 2014).
This interview provided an opinion from a nursing professor which will help with my comparative essay. 

Ban on Health Practitioners

The president of the Cosmetic Physicians Society of Australasia, Dr. Gabrielle Caswell stated that, “Children should not receive cosmetic or surgical procedures of any kind unless there are compelling medical or psychological reasons to do so. They watch the Kardashians and come to me with pictures they see on instagram of models - they want to look like that”. Her organization attempted to pass a ban on health practitioners from performing procedures such as liposuction or lip augmentation on teenagers. The ban would put physicians in jail for two years if they treated a child before they reached the age of 18.
This article provided information from a ban that is in the process of being accepted in South Asia. 

Carroll, L. (2013, July 22). Ban teen cosmetic surgery: doctors. Retrieved February 18, 2014,

from http://www.theage.com.au/national/

ban-teen-cosmetic-surgery-doctors-20130721-2qcoo.html

Zach Charbonneau interview

Gerald Charbonneau has a PH.D in Sociology and currently is a professor at Madonna University. Charbonneau doesn’t know anyone personally who underwent cosmetic surgery as a teen. He understands all of the pressures that teens go through and he still does not believe teens should receive cosmetic surgery. He stated, “I would not encourage it, generally speaking.” Charbonneau also believed that cosmetic surgery is only available to an elite group of teenagers due to its cost. He firmly believed that even if the teenagers are old enough to undergo cosmetic surgery they should still consult with the parents. He stated, “Depending on the age of teenagers, it should be a collaborative decision between teenagers and the adult”. He then went on explaining this saying that it is not only peers that pressure teens to undergo cosmetic surgery. The parents sometimes try to use their own kid to benefit themselves. He stated, “A negative part is when the adult uses the surgery more for their own benefit, they want their child to become the next big actor or be in the Rose Bowl”.  Charbonneau does not believe that undergoing cosmetic surgery is a perfect solution for one’s self esteem. He stated, “I think it can; however, only short term”. He then concluded by saying, “I do not think of cosmetic surgery as a major social problem” 

 This interview gives great information from an expert and it will be very useful in writing my paper.

(G. Charbonneau, personal communication, February 14, 2014).