Half of women would consider cosmetic surgery

Over half of young women admit that they would have cosmetic surgery to improve their looks, a new survey has revealed.

The research, conducted by BBC Radio 1's Newsbeat and 1extra's TXU, also revealed disturbing facts about the ways in which Britain's women perceive their bodies, with nearly half claiming that they have skipped a meal and eight per cent admitting to making themselves sick to lose weight.

"It is sad to read such statistics but not that surprising for us as we receive many calls from the age group mentioned and a lot younger," a spokeswoman for Beating Eating Disorders told the BBC.

The spokeswoman revealed that around 1.1 million people in the UK suffer from eating disorders and added: "It's so important for people to develop a healthy perception of their bodies and to raise their self esteem and to develop positive ways of coping with the difficulties that life can bring."

The survey of 25,000 women, mostly aged between 17 and 34, also showed that two thirds of size 14 women consider themselves overweight and more than ten per cent claim to hate their appearance.

Women who said they would consider surgery tended to want breast enlargement, with liposuction being the next most popular cosmetic surgery procedure.

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