oct0801.JPGMany women struggle with the impact of aging and pregnancy on their bodies. But the marketing of the “mommy makeover” seeks to pathologize the postpartum body, characterizing pregnancy and childbirth as maladies with disfiguring after.

Last year, doctors nationwide performed more than 325,000 “mommy makeover procedures” on women ages 20 to 39, up 11 percent from 2005, the group.

Dr. Stoker (plastic surgeon) said that he performs combination surgeries on mothers at least once a week, at a cost of $10,000 to $30,000

But other surgeons worry that packaging multiple procedures under a cutesy nickname could induce women to have additional operations, potentially increasing their risk of everything from infections to death.

In other words, a woman seeking a tummy tuck, although not particularly concerned about the appearance of her breasts, may be influenced to have breast surgery just because it is part of “the package”

Some women go back to a pretty flat stomach and some don’t, some go back to their pre-baby weight and some don’t… the question is, does that need to be treated with a surgical makeover?

· Summarized of Natasha singer’s Report from New York Times, Oct. 4, 2007