(PNS reporting from BEVERLY HILLS) Facial hair transplants for men desiring sexy, just-rolled-out-of-bed beards have skyrocketed in recent years. And Los Angeles, home to many Latinos with indigenous — and thus hairless — roots, is the epicenter for the growing transplant procedure.
Fortunately for would-be burly bearded men here, there’s an ample supply of facial hair donors in the same city, according to plastic surgeon Dr. Amit Patel.
“What we’re seeing in Los Angeles is a group who wants facial hair, Latino men, and a group that has plenty of facial hair and doesn’t want it, Latinas,” he told PNS.
Latinas, according to Patel, often have lots of facial hair they don’t know what to do with. The natural coincidence has led to his clinic being the busiest facial transplant center in the country.
“It changed my life to suddenly have facial hair, all of a sudden I look like Ben Affleck,” said Oaxaca native Rogelio Álvarez. “I feel so much more manly.”
For women, the surgical procedure has a positive effect.
“I kind of got tired of being compared to Frida Kahlo all the time, and there seems to be no non-crappy way of getting rid of facial hair,” said Sara Aguirre, who said she tried waxing, hair removal cream, shaving and lasers, only to find that her stubborn beard and mustache returned.
“I’m hard core like that,” she told PNS.
For his part, Patel is excited to see the procedure grow. Of course it’s good for business, but he hopes to figure out ways to turn the procedure into something more lucrative and long-term, perhaps repurposing leg hair or armpit hair.
Bearded lady photo via Wikimedia Commons.
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