Why smoking and cosmetic surgery don’t mix

If you are considering any kind of plastic surgery – and you’re a smoker – you may want to pause right there.

Whatever your reasons for wanting cosmetic surgery – continuing to smoke will make you a less acceptable candidate in the eyes of most plastic surgeons.

Put simply – smoking intensifies the risks from cosmetic surgery and delays healing and recovery.

All board certified plastic surgeons will refuse to perform cosmetic surgery on anyone who smokes unless they give up at least three weeks before and after the surgery. 

But this is the absolute minimum – if you want the best result from your cosmetic surgery and the safest procedure – give up for good.

Here’s some of the reasons your plastic surgeon won’t operate on you if you continue to smoke:

Nicotine interrupts blood flow to damaged tissues.  After cosmetic surgery you need a free flow of oxygenated blood to your tissues to keep them alive.  Oxygenated blood is also needed to fight off infection and get antibiotics into your system quickly.

A patient who smokes is at a significantly far greater risk of severe infections, pneumonia, and tissue death after a cosmetic procedure.  The risk of an infection like pneumonia is even greater because of the clogging effect of cigarette smoke on the lungs.

The results of cosmetic surgery will be undermined by continuing to smoke.  Smoking makes skin aging worse and is very bad news for your skin – sagging and wrinkling will return more quickly than for a non smoker after the same cosmetic surgery procedure.

Radical procedures may be too risky to undertake if you smoke.  Procedures that involve a lot of stretching and pulling of skin – face lifts, tummy tucks and some reconstructive surgery – may be refused by a plastic surgeon because of the much higher level of risk for smokers.

For many women considering cosmetic surgery – this is the ideal time to quit smoking.

All surgery involves a risk to health and all smokers are more at risk from surgery than non-smokers. If you had to have a sudden surgerical procedure there wouldn’t be anything you could do to reduce the risks from smoking.  Deciding to have cosmetic surgery is different – you can remove the additional risk to your health by simply stopping smoking in plenty of time before your procedure.

As well as lowering your risk – if you stop smoking your face will heal quicker after cosmetic surgery and you’ll look younger for longer afterwards.

Related articles:

• Be honest about your reasons for cosmetic surgery
• Are you too old for cosmetic surgery?
• Smoking and skin aging