Gaining popularity: Amid rising obesity levels, not only are more Irish people contributing to a booming image industry, they are also more interested in having cosmetic surgery, according to a new study.
The report on cosmetic surgery found that one in four respondents were overweight and one in eight would consider undergoing cosmetic surgery.
Recent Department of Health statistics show an estimated 42 per cent of males and 27 percent of females are overweight. Another 14 per cent of males and 12 per cent of females are obese.
According to the new Millward Brown IMS study, 15 per cent of respondents have tried to lose weight in the past year.
Of those, 22 per cent of women followed a weight-loss programme or diet, while only 8 per cent of men did. More than 1,000 adults were interviewed for the survey to assess attitudes to cosmetic surgery.
More than half of the men and women trying to lose weight said they were doing so for health reasons. Cosmetic surgery, however, is gaining popularity, apparently faster than dieting.
People between the ages of 25 and 34 are most open to having cosmetic surgery, while women are three times more likely to consider it than men.
However, the less intrusive a procedure is, the more interest there is.
While 18 per cent of women and 6 per cent of men would consider procedures such as a face-lift or tummy tuck, the number interested in non-surgical treatments, such as teeth whitening or laser hair removal, doubled in each case.
Ireland's beauty industry is estimated to be worth €3 billion annually, with Irish adults spending an average of €85 each month on toiletries, hairdressers and barbers, cosmetics and other beauty treatments, according to the study.
The divide between those who are overweight and those seeking cosmetic surgery may be growing, Bettina MacCarvill of Millward Brown IMS said.
"It makes you wonder if in 20 years' time Ireland will be quasi polarised," she said, "with one camp slave to the body beautiful and the other choosing to opt out of the image game, but struggling with morbid obesity," she said.