Social media filters drove a surge in plastic surgery toward celebrity looks.

Evidence

Between 2005 and 2019, there was a 90 percent increase in augmentation surgeries, including the controversial Brazilian butt lift. Filters on social media further blurred the line between real and virtual beauty. And once app users saw their faces “ten per cent more conventionally attractive,” as Tolentino put it, they often brought these images into consultations for plastic surgery. But they also wanted to look like one person in particular. Celebrity surgeon Dr. Jason Diamond noted, “thirty per cent of people come in bringing a photo of Kim, or someone like Kim.” — W. David Marx, Blank Space, 651

Categorization

• QUESTION: The 90% augmentation-surgery increase across 2005-2019 is striking — worth verifying the baseline and what drove it besides filters.
• CANDY: ‘Thirty percent of plastic-surgery consultations start with a photo of Kim Kardashian’ is a fun, shareable stat.