I am amazed by the number of plastic surgery makeover shows that are on television. Think about the message they are sending to us: Your nose is too big, too long or too pointed. Your skin is too wrinkled or flabby. Your chest isn’t big enough. Your lips are too big or too small. Your eyes are too baggy. There seems to be some little thing wrong with everyone’s body, except for those select few whose looks people are trying to replicate.

According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, cosmetic procedures have increased 228 percent since 1997. Television programs like “The Swan,” “Extreme Makeover,” “MTV’s I Want a Famous Face” and “Nip/Tuck” expose people to the different types of problems people have with their looks and the procedures they can have to fix them.

What some people don’t know is that the TV shows select candidates who will have success with the procedures, leading people to the false belief that they, too, can be “fixed.”

Plastic surgery has evolved very much, and I believe there is too much emphasis on using it to change a person’s natural appearance.

We were all created differently and should work on accepting that and not feel pressured to change it.

Michelle Levetzow

Junior

Liberal Studies