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The death of social media influencer and entrepreneur Jacky Oh is widely being attributed to a cosmetic surgery procedure she reportedly underwent in Miami, Florida. According to statistics, Black Americans like Jacky Oh account for just a small fraction of such plastic surgery.
Jacky Oh, the longtime girlfriend of actor and comedian DC Young Fly, died Thursday at the age of 32.
Social media reports claim Dr. Zachary Okhah, a board-certified plastic surgeon more commonly known as Dr. Zach, performed a “mommy makeover” on Jacky Oh.
But while it may seem as if more Black people are undergoing plastic surgery procedures like the popular Brazilian butt lift, the numbers say otherwise.
According to data from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), which bills itself as “the largest plastic surgery specialty organization in the world,” Black people are among those who are least likely to get cosmetic procedures and/or enhancements.
Statistics from ASPS show that white people by far received the lion’s share of cosmetic procedures in 2020 when the most recent data was compiled.
Broken down by ethnic background, ASPS found that 66% of all plastic surgery patients that year were white. That was actually a decline from 2019 when 70% of the people who underwent cosmetic procedures were white.
Hispanic patients ranked second on that list, accounting for 13% of the plastic surgery performed in 2020 and 11% in 2019.
Ranking third, Black plastic surgery patients made up 11% of all people who received cosmetic procedures in 2020. That is virtually the same as the 10% figure for Black plastic surgery patients in 2019.
Asians and “other” account for the remainder of those who received plastic surgery procedures in 2020 with fewer than 10%, respectively.
On a more granular level, when it comes to the so-called tummy tuck — one of the procedures associated with a “mommy makeover” — white people also disproportionately had the surgery performed on themselves in 2020.
Formally known as abdominoplasty, the Mayo Clinic defines a tummy tuck as:
A tummy tuck — also known as abdominoplasty — is a cosmetic surgical procedure to improve the shape and appearance of the abdomen.
During a tummy tuck, excess skin and fat are removed from the abdomen. Connective tissue in the abdomen (fascia) usually is tightened with sutures as well. The remaining skin is then repositioned to create a more toned look.
You might choose to have a tummy tuck if you have excess fat or skin around the area of your bellybutton or a weak lower abdominal wall. A tummy tuck can also boost your body image.
In 2020, Black people accounted for 7% of those who received a tummy tuck. That’s compared to 74% for white people.
The numbers were similarly low among Black people when it came to rhinoplasty, or nose jobs (5%); breast augmentation (6%); and blepharoplasty, or eyelid surgery (3%).
The plastic surgical procedure most favored by Black people is liposuction, accounting for 15% of all such procedures in 2020.
Minimally invasive procedures like botox (4%), chemical peels (10%) and laser hair removal (8%) were also similarly low among Black patients.
ASPS did not have any data for Brazilian butt lifts, which has seemingly become an increasingly deadly procedure that in many cases is clandestinely performed by unqualified individuals who do not have medical degrees.
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