Anti-wrinkle injections such as botox were the most common procedure, the survey suggested, with just under one in four patients having botox aged 18 to 34.<\/p>\n
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But while the primary market for non-cosmetic injectables has traditionally been middle-aged women, many in the industry say they are now seeing a shift.<\/p>\n
“The majority of our patients are between the ages of 18 and 35,” said cosmetic injectables clinic operator Vivek Eranki, whose company operates 20 clinics across New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Queensland and Western Australia.<\/p>\n
“When we initially started [the business] back in 2017, the vast majority of our patients that were getting [cosmetic procedures] were 40-plus,” he told triple j hack.<\/p>\n
“We’ve seen an evolution pretty quickly of patients of that demographic, to patients of younger demographics.”<\/p>\n
Maria Comyns, who runs another clinic in Canberra, says she has noticed a similar trend.<\/p>\n
“You do see a lot more gen Z coming in asking for advice about their face, like showing you videos,” Dr Comyns told triple j hack.<\/p>\n
A registered nurse for cosmetic injectables, Sarah Crocker, who works at a clinic in Sydney, also says her client base has been getting younger.<\/p>\n
“People, especially young girls, want the ‘no-make-up’ look,” she told triple j hack.<\/p>\n
What’s behind the change?<\/p>\n
Professor of psychology at Adelaide University Gemma Sharp has been researching body image and cosmetic procedures for several years.<\/p>\n
She says she’s noticed “increasing numbers” of young people seeking out injectables, such as botox and filler.<\/p>\n
She says the procedures have become cheaper over that time, leading to more young people undergoing them.<\/p>\n
“You can get them done at local shopping malls very readily in your lunch time,” she told triple j hack.<\/p>\n
“The prices have also come down considerably making it again more accessible for young people who might not have as much disposable income as their seniors.”<\/p>\n
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Gemma Sharp says the cosmetic injectables industry is not as well regulated as other medical industries. (Supplied: Gemma Sharp)<\/p>\n
But Professor Sharp also believes the injectables industry needs to be better regulated, with recent changes to advertising guidelines just the first step.<\/p>\n
“I actually think Australia is ahead of some other countries, which is great,” Professor Sharp told hack.<\/p>\n
“But certainly, it is still considered a ‘wild west’ part of medicine \u2014 it does not have the same level of governance and rigour as other areas of medicine and health care.”<\/p>\n
Ms Crocker, who is in her 20s, has had a number of treatments, including anti-wrinkle injections, lip filler and facial rejuvenation treatments.<\/p>\n
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Sarah Crocker says gen Z clients want the no-make up look promoted by some celebrities. (Supplied)<\/p>\n
She says people in gen Z are looking for a more subtle look, mirroring the celebrity trend of dissolving filler and being transparent about what procedures they have had done.<\/p>\n
“In the last few years, the big lip, big cheek, dramatic features look is down \u2026 they’re going for the more natural look.”<\/p>\n
Cosmetics industry ‘like airlines’<\/p>\n
Clinic operator Vivek Eranki said increased safety and regulation around cosmetic products in Australia had also contributed to the increase in demand.<\/p>\n
Figures provided to triple j hack by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency, or AHPRA, show cosmetic injectables make up a small proportion of overall complaints, with 25 complaints against nurses or doctors in the industry recorded in the four months between September and December last year.<\/p>\n
There were also 147 complaints made to the agency related to industry advertising, especially on social media, between June and December last year.<\/p>\n
“What’s happened with the cosmetic industry is what’s happened with the airline industry about 50 years ago: we’ve become safer and safer,” Vivek Eranki said.<\/p>\n
“Because it’s become safer, more and more people are seeking it out as well.”<\/p>\n
Clients in their late 30s and older used to feel a lot of stigma around using cosmetic injectables, Canberra practitioner Dr Comyns said, but that was less prevalent among younger clients.<\/p>\n
“It was very much a taboo topic to talk about beforehand \u2014 you wouldn’t talk about it with your friends.”<\/p>\n
Conversely, she said younger clients often approached her clinic having seen influencers and celebrities openly discuss what procedures they’ve had done.<\/p>\n
“I feel like it is driven a lot by social media and what they’re seeing out there,” Dr Comyns said.<\/p>\n
“I’m thinking about the Kardashians and the Jenners being like, ‘We’ve had this and this and this done’, and it seems to be much more open and spoken about.”<\/p>\n
Researchers see ‘video calling’ effect<\/p>\n
Vivek Eranki said his gen Z clients were often influenced by trends or treatments they had seen online.<\/p>\n
“They’re very open to sharing their experiences on social media,” he said.<\/p>\n
“When the Barbie movie came out, Barbie Botox to the shoulders was a thing for a while.<\/p>\n
“What we’re seeing now is \u2026 more patients are coming in for higher cheekbones and a pointed chin.”<\/p>\n
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New guidelines implemented last year require practitioners to undergo additional training for injectables. (Unsplash: Sam Moghadam)<\/p>\n
Sarah Crocker said she was also seeing older clients being encouraged by their adult children.<\/p>\n
“I feel like my older clients [are] sometimes brought in from their children that come and see me.”<\/p>\n
Professor Sharp said increased use of social media and technology like video calling had also made people more concerned about whether or not their faces fitted an “ideal”.<\/p>\n
“Social media has done a terrific job of propagating appearance ideals, particularly facial appearance ideals,” she told hack.<\/p>\n
“And when we think of communicating with each other, we tend to look at each other’s faces, eyes, nose, mouth, for those all-important communication cues.<\/p>\n
“We’re not necessarily looking at people’s hands and other parts of their bodies,” she said.<\/p>\n
“If you’re seeing all of the same types of faces because they’ve had the same kinds of procedures done, it tells you that this is the idea, that this is what you should be aiming for.”<\/p>\n