More Singaporeans getting cosmetic work done this Covid period
Singapore aesthetic clinics see rise in number of 'virgin faces' amid pandemic
More Singaporeans appear to be willing to fork out money on aesthetic and cosmetic enhancements as a means of self-care, perhaps because they have more disposable income after having to shelve plans for holidays abroad because of travel restrictions due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Dr Tan Ying Zhou from Mizu Aesthetic Clinic said he is seeing a 10 per cent increase in "virgin faces" - patients who were previously not interested in medical aesthetic treatments.
He told The New Paper: "Most of them are doing so because they will not be travelling this year.
"Additionally, I feel people want to make themselves feel better in this time of uncertainty by beautifying themselves. Self-care is also about feeling good about yourself."
One other reason for the increase in first-time patients, according to Dr Tan, is due to the fact more people have more downtime as they are mainly working from home and do not have to attend face-to-face meetings.
He said: "These include procedures for treating scars, non-surgical facelifts and pigmentation removal that require a longer healing process."
Dr Siew Tuck Wah from Radium Medical Aesthetics is also fielding more requests for weight loss and body contouring treatments, which he believes could be because of the weight gain incurred during the circuit breaker.
He is seeing an uptick of 10 per cent to 20 per cent in new patients, and he said: "I also believe this is because more people are working flexible hours and are less pressed for time when undergoing treatments at our clinic."
Dr Leo Kah Woon of Dr Leo Aesthetic Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery has also performed more procedures, ranging from the upper and lower blepharoplasty (eyelid creation and eye bag removal) to filler injections to the tear trough around the eyes.
He has experienced a 20 per cent spike in "virgin faces" and he believes it is partly because of the "Zoom Boom".
"After months of conducting meetings via video calls, some patients have started to find parts of their facial features they don't like on themselves in the video thumbnail. Common areas of concern include wrinkles and laugh lines, which has led to an increase in botulinum toxin and filler injections," he said.
Dr Leo said more patients are also open to lip filler injections and dimple creation.
"There are very few social events like gala dinners or wedding dinners to attend, hence these patients can afford to 'hide at home' for post-procedure recuperation."
"Pre-pandemic, there were alternative locations for patients who desired surgery - they could go to Thailand or Korea. But now with the closure of borders, they can only turn to local surgeons for their beauty fix," he added.
"But perhaps one of the most important reasons to undertake more permanent and invasive surgeries now is the fear that Covid-19 self-isolation and social distancing measures would be tightened again and it may be some time before they can get any procedures done."
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