Rumors are buzzing that Kylie Jenner had gone under the knife to enhance her lips. While her lips do look noticeably bigger than they did years back, the young reality star has denied these allegations. “How can I look the same from age 12 to 18?" she argued. Whether she enhanced her lips or not is not the real issue. The problem is that some young people are so obsessed with Jenner's plump kisser that they took to a strange home remedy to attempt to achieve Jenner's large lips.
This home remedy includes putting a glass container such as a jar, cup or shot glass around one's lips and sucking all the air out. The suction causes the lips to swell; however, results vary. Most of the time the person's lips look extremely, unnaturally, large and not at all like Jenner's cute pout.
Instantly, the fad turned into an Internet challenge where participants would “plump" their lips and post videos or pictures on social media using the hashtag #KylieJennerChallenge.
Problems arose because the challenge can damage the skin. The suction causes bruising on and around the lips. These bruises can be so intense that the blood could stain the skin and leave a permanent ring where the glassware was placed. According to Dr. Stephen Davis of Davis Cosmetic Plastic Surgery, "There's a potential risk that it can create a blood clotting situation, which can create beads or knots of blood around the lips." Some participants have broken the glassware while “plumping" their lips and were cut badly.
Not only is this challenge physically dangerous, it is also emotionally concerning. While many people consider it fun and games, the challenge could relate to body image issues. Obsessing over a certain body part can bruise one's body image. Admiring Jenner for her full lips is not at all a problem. It becomes a problem when young people are willing to harm and distort their bodies to change their look.
Young people should embrace their lips, and the rest of their bodies, as they are. They should also be reminded that unnatural, thick, lips and the Kylie Jenner Lip Challenge are nothing more than fads. Who knows, maybe next month it will be popular to have thin lips. Either way, participating in the challenge is not worth the pain, unsightly bruising and potentially permanent damage.
