Did you know that women who have breast implants are three times more likely to commit suicide? This is according to research done by Dr. Loren Lipworth of the Lipworth of the International Epidemiology Institute and the Vanderbilt University of Medical Center in Tennessee.
The findings were published in the “Annals of Plastic Surgery” August edition, with a warning that plastic surgeons needed to assess a women’s mental health before committing to breast implants.
This was not the only study to report such high suicide rates in women who had breast implants. There is a 7% higher suicide rate among women who have breast implants in the early stages, and it continues to rise over the years. But wait – this doesn’t mean you need to avoid having breast implants.
The association between breast implants and an increased suicide appears to have nothing to do with anything in the implants but everything to do with a women’s mental state prior to the implants.
We all know that many of us decide to have breast augmentation to help with our self-esteem and our body image. Some women are actually suffering from depression and need medical help, not breast implants. Sadly they often go undiagnosed, one of the reasons the Plastic Surgeons board is recommended women be screened early.
“Excess Mortality From Suicide and Other External Causes of Death Among Women With Cosmetic Breast Implants.”
Lipworth, Loren; Nyren, Olof; Ye, Weimin; Fryzek, Jon P; Tarone, Robert E; McLaughlin, Joseph K.
Annals of Plastic Surgery, 59(2):119-123, August 2007
