Doctor Xia Yang from Beijing Shijitan Hospital has practised cosmetic surgery for almost 15 years and said the nip and tuck trend began about a decade ago.

Xia said cosmetic surgery could be performed on all areas of the head, neck and body to enhance the aesthetic appeal of these areas.

Chinese women particularly favor facial surgery and liposuction. A Chinese standard for beauty is commonly defined as double eyelid, oval face, long and slender eyebrows, and slender waist.

A lot of patients, however, are making reckless decisions without weighing up the consequences of their actions, according to Xia.

Many girls decide to undergo surgery simply because others did it and looked good and regardless if they even need it.

"Cosmetic surgery has a highly individualized nature. Double eyelid and a long nose may look good on one person, but strange on another," said Xia.

Once a girl asked Xia for double eyelid surgery, but he refused. The girl had an oval face, which Xia believed did not quite match the double eyelid look.

Two months later, the girl came to Xia, crying, and asked him to turn her double eyelids, created somewhere else, back to the single ones. She hated the new look. However, such an operation was beyond his capability as a cosmetic surgeon.

Xia often refused to operate in certain circumstances.

He does not operate on patients, such as the above-mentioned girl who blindly follow others without considering their own unique features.

The second problem are patients who have a burning desire to resemble their idols. The third group is patients experiencing setbacks in their love life who try cosmetic surgery in the hope of changing their lovers' minds.

Any operation involves risks no matter how minor the procedure, and cosmetic surgery is no exception, said doctor Xia.

Anaesthesia is required for most operations and allergic reactions might occur. Paralysis of facial muscles can also occur at less reputable cosmetic surgery centers.

In fact, cosmetic surgery rarely meets the expectations of the patients, according to doctor Xia. "They often ask us why it could not be better," he said.