Plus a TikTok-approved contouring hack on how you can mimic buccal fat removal
Have you ever seen someone with a chiseled jawline, so sharp in fact, that it can just cut a bitch? Well, they may actually have undergone buccal fat removal—but you didn’t hear it from me.
On the American satire website Reductress, a headline reads: Why I Got My Buccal Fat Removed So I Could Store More Acorns in My Cheeks. (From the POV of a cheeky chipmunk, of course.) People seem to have gotten over embracing plump cheeks—think Selena Gomez and Florence Pugh—and entering their Tim Burton era with TikTok’s latest surgery craze: buccal fat removal.
Also known as cheek reduction surgery, this tricky procedure involves extracting buccal fat pads—a mass of tissue—from one’s cheeks. This permanently removes fat cells from the face to shape and accentuate the area. Think prominent cheekbones, a sharp jawline and an overall contoured face.
Chrissy Teigen is the only celebrity who has openly admitted having undergone the surgery, and way before all the hype around it. In a candid Instagram story back in 2021, she shared, “I did that Dr. Diamond buccal fat removal thing here,” all while pointing to her cheeks.
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Model and certified hot girl, Gabbriette Bechtel, is the poster child of what people *actually* want to look like. (This is what it means to be favored by God.) Other celebrities are rumored to have undergone the procedure to make their cheekbones pop—with names like Bella Hadid, Dove Cameron and, most recently, Lea Michele.
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More people have become more open to plastic surgery, but are there cons to buccal fat removal? Yes.
First off, it ages horribly. As we age, our cheeks slowly lose fat (and the people say amen). If someone has the procedure done, this will make them look significantly older.
New York-based cosmetic dermatologist Ellen Gendler addresses this in a TikTok video. She notes, “Buccal fat removal is the worst thing a young person could do to a face. Trends come and go, but fat will be gone forever. And as you age, you will wish you had not done something so foolish. And surgeons, remember our oath—do no harm!”
@ellengendlermd Buccal fat removal is the worst thing a young person could do to a face. Trends come and go, but fat will be gone forever. And as you age, you will wish you had not done something so foolish. And surgeons remember our oath- do no harm! #buccalfatremoval #buccalfat #buccal #buccalfatpadremoval #buccalfatpadsculpting #buccalremoval #buccalfatpad #dermatologytiktok #skincare101 ♬ Monkeys Spinning Monkeys – Kevin MacLeod & Kevin The Monkey
As the “dumbest trend I’ve seen in a long time,” Gendler warns young people about the trendy surgery because it will result in premature aging. There’s no point in spending thousands on skincare products to appear “youthful” because this procedure will cancel out all your efforts. She adds, “Cold girl makeup? That’s fine; you can wash it off. But buccal fat removal is permanent, and if you hate it—you’re stuck. Don’t do it.”
RELATED: JUVÉDERM Dermal Fillers for A Naturally Contoured Face
In this house, we don’t shame anyone for entertaining the idea of cosmetic surgery. But knowing the pros and cons of a procedure is a must, especially in the long run.
Now if you don’t want to go under the knife, but still want that coveted model-like cheekbones, there’s an easy-peasy contouring hack for that. All you need is a cream contour stick and a compact powder!
@wahmeko how to get model cheekbones #contour #makeuptutorial #buccalfatremoval #contourtutorial ♬ miss bella hadid – gabby ✿
Header Photo Kristine Studden on Instagram
Art Matthew Ian Fetalver
