Breast Implants for Teenagers?
May 29th 2006 05:04
from www.morguefile.com
When 19 year old BB6 housemate Krystal, announced on national television that she had silicone implanted into her breasts, the nation was divided in its thoughts on the matter. For some, she was too young to have had plastic surgery. For others, Krystal was an individual, capable of making her own choices in life. For me, well, I didn’t actually know her name was Krystal. I just knew her as that kid on Big Brother with fake boobs.
Regardless of what anyone thinks, the bottom line is that under Australian law, Krystal has the legal right to receive cosmetic surgery if she so chooses. For starters, Krystal is not a minor. Minors are defined under legislation to attain majority at 18 years of age.
Generally, if you are a minor you cannot consent to a medical procedure. There is a presumption in the law that minors are incompetent to make such a decision. Only your parents can consent to medical treatment, and any parent in their right mind probably would not consent to their daughter’s breast augmentation.
However, as children grow up, they gradually acquire the right to make their own decisions about some procedures, and when that happens, the child’s consent is sufficient authority for the procedure to be undertaken. So does that mean teenage girls potentially can receive breast implants? Well, yes, but the answer is not quite as simple as it seems.
There is a test that is generally applied known as the ‘Mature Minor Test’: A minor is capable of giving informed consent when he or she achieves a sufficient level of understanding and intelligence to enable him or her to understand fully what is proposed. By law, a child must understand the nature of the treatment and its consequences before a doctor can undertake the particular procedure. The more serious and invasive the surgery is, the more carefully a doctor must assess the child’s level of understanding. Doctors are legally obliged to consider the patient’s apparent maturity, intelligence and attitude, signs of mental illness, depression, social history and so on. So if a doctor is approached by a teenage girl who fits the criteria of a Mature Minor, then legally, he or she can go ahead with the operation.
It’s a distressing thought isn’t it? This is the state of the law in a society so obsessed with self image, in a society where girls are growing up idolising Pamela Anderson, Tara Reid and even Krystal. There have been calls by surgeons, parents and the public to ban cosmetic surgery of minors but so far, the law stands as it is.
| 85 |
| Vote |
Subscribe to this blog
Comment by The BFG
The doctors in these situation are in the usual difficult position of immense responsibilty and risk (from the legal point of view) It would have to be a very brave or very foolish doctor who would agree to give breast implants to a minor if her parents had refushed their permission.
You'd think that after the doctor explained that she'd have to have them "updated" every 15 yrs or so (rather than it being a one-off procedure) the girl would reconsider.
Another cracker of an article, Ms. Brunette, keep 'em coming!
Comment by Legally Brunette
My Wedding
In my opinion, the best thing a doctor can do is try and pursuade young girls to talk to their parents before they undergo any major cosmetic procedures.
Comment by Cibbuano
20/20 Filmsight
Science News
Hunt Famous
Orble Post of the Day
Fat Cult
Techbreak
That's what our culture encourages... by being thin with big, fake breasts, you can almost immediately become a model, or a cheerleader, or a Hooters waitress...I've heard of some bars offering to pay for their waitresses implants, in exchange for 2 years of service.
Comment by Legally Brunette
My Wedding
Yeah, I think you'd make a great dictator. Why put something into your body that doesn't belong there? That can cost so much? That can cause serious health risks?
It would be really interesting to find out from any girls who have had breast implants why they chose to have them. Is it related to popularity? Self Esteem? Attention? Something else?
Comment by Cibbuano
20/20 Filmsight
Science News
Hunt Famous
Orble Post of the Day
Fat Cult
Techbreak
But she went overboard and got pretty huge ones... that was pretty disconcerting.
Yes, you should ask a girl who has them... naturally, they'll rationalize them...
one reason is that we men, in general, are pretty stupid. If we see a girl with a large rack, we ogle first, then think much, much later.
Comment by Legally Brunette
My Wedding
Let's take you Cibby as an example. You have never commented on any of my posts, but the breast one did it for you ?
I rest my case.
Comment by Cibbuano
20/20 Filmsight
Science News
Hunt Famous
Orble Post of the Day
Fat Cult
Techbreak
uh...
ah, it's true. I commented on this post because it was breast-related. I'm pretty breast-obsessed, I guess.
Or is it just because it's an interesting topic? For example, if you had posted about men getting silicone implants in their penis, I probably would have commented on that, too.
Comment by Legally Brunette
My Wedding