Writer Probes the Land of Lipo

But it won't pay for replacements

(NEWSER) - The Venezuelan government has offered to pay for the removal of defective breast implants for its own citizens, reports the BBC . The implants were produced by a now-defunct French company and are filled with industrial grade silicone—increasing their chance of rupturing. Replacement implants, however, will not be covered. More»

At least for those who get breast lifts or reductions

(NEWSER) - A plastic surgeon wants smokers to know: If you light up within a month of a breast lift, your nipples could literally drop off. That's because smoking can reduce blood flow to some parts of the anatomy. If those body parts don't get blood, they die, writes Anthony Youn at CNN . He had a patient whose nipples turned purple around the time of her surgery. Youn managed to save the nipples—but his method wasn't pleasant. More»

Make sure your surgeon is certified, plastic surgery board urges

(NEWSER) - In the 48 states where doctors don't need to be certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgeons to perform plastic surgery, unwary patients run the risk of ending up like Dinora Rodriguez, experts warn. The 40-year-old woman was left with a merged "uniboob" by an uncertified surgeon who had incorrectly told her that her breast implants needed to be repaired. Rodriguez, the face of the board's latest safety campaign, was also left with eyes that won't fully close after the surgeon performed a "lid lift" procedure that she hadn't requested. More»

Courtney Love says it made her look 'wonky'

(NEWSER) - Minka Kelly this week told David Letterman that she came thisclose to getting plastic surgery: She worked as a scrub nurse at a doctor's office in exchange for a planned boob job, which a former Playboy Playmate told her she needed. She ultimately changed her mind, reports the Huffington Post —but a lot of stars didn't. The Frisky relates 13 tales of celebs who went under the knife, only to publicly regret it later:

• Heather Morris: The Glee star got a boob job when she was younger, but had the implants removed because, she said, “it was hard being active with them, because my chest was always sore.”
• Tori Spelling: She also regrets her boob job, but for a different reason: Now that she’s a mom, she said, “if I had known that it would or could possibly impact production of milk, I wouldn’t have had them.”
• Lisa Rinna: She was famous for her pumped-up lips—and she didn’t like it. “My lips started to define who I am,” she said. “That bothered me,” so she got them deflated.

Kate Winslet, Emma Thompson, Rachel Weisz not going under the knife

(NEWSER) - Get ready for wrinkles. That's the word from 35-year-old actress Kate Winslet, who, along with pals Emma Thompson and Rachel Weisz, is taking a vow against plastic surgery and Botox. They've even launched the British Anti-Cosmetic Surgery League. "It goes against my morals, the way my parents brought me up, and what I consider to be natural beauty," Winslet tells the Telegraph . As for Botox, she explains: "I'm an actress. I don't want to freeze the expression of my face." "We're in this awful youth-driven thing now where everybody needs to look 30 at 60," chimes in Thompson, 52. "I'm not fiddling about with myself." (Gwyneth Paltrow is also anti-Botox ... but pro-boob jobs? Click to read .) More»