“The bigger the better…” is out in breast augmentation

Mariah Carey’s new album cover, “The Art of Letting Go,” reveals a curvy 43-year-old singer. One thing that does stand out—when you look at this photo compared to photos taken much earlier in Carey’s career–is her breast size.

Pop stars often start fashion, hairdo and makeup trends. Even the shapes of their bodies make statements. In this case, though, Carey’s larger breasts are not what’s trending. In fact, I’ve noticed in my practice that women are opting for a more natural, proportional look after breast augmentation.

No implants needed

Breast augmentation by fat transfer–a procedure that uses one’s own fat to plump the breasts one cup size–is all the rage. Sometimes, we can go a cup and a half larger.

The concept is simple, we remove fat from places a woman doesn’t want it and use that fat (rather than implants) to rebuild, rebalance and re-volumize breasts that might have lost some of their size and perk over time. The result is a natural looking larger (but not too large) breast. You can see and example here: Before and After Breast Augmentation.

Other benefits of breast augmentation by fat transfer include:

• Only local anesthesia is generally needed for the procedure.
• Results last for the long-term– several years in many cases.
• We don’t use a scalpel, so there are no visible scars.
• There is no capsular contracture, which is hardening of the breasts, because we use fat, which is soft.

Good candidates need to have enough unwanted fat to do the procedure and only want up to be up to a cup and a half larger.

What’s new in breast augmentation with breast implants?

For those who want to go up in breast size by two cups or more, we’ve come a long way in refining breast augmentation with implants. Today’s patients have more options. For example, newer implants include the Allergan Natrelle 410 and Mentor MemoryShape implants (FDA approved in June 2013). These are cohesive get breast implants. Cohesive gel is firmer and retains a fixed shape. But, in my opinion, while they are newer options, they are not as popular as the softer, more pliable silicone and saline implants.

Learn more about breast augmentation by fat transfer and breast augmentation in general.