China’s cosmetic surgery industry is booming – but as it surges, it faces a worrying shortage of qualified practitioners. #BBCEye investigates.

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In China today, looking good is seen as key to career success. With beauty videos promoting extreme weight-loss flooding social media and beauty apps allowing surgery appointments to be booked at the click of a button, China’s cosmetic surgery industry is booming.

But the rise in demand has led to a shortage of qualified practitioners and licensed clinics. Hundreds of accidents are happening inside Chinese clinics every day.

This documentary meets the pioneers of the industry and tells the stories of victims of botched surgeries and recruitment scams.

00:00 Introduction: Manufacturing Beauty in China
02:15 Abby Wu – one of China’s first cosmetic surgery influencers
02:25 ‘At 14, my mum took me to a clinic for liposuction’
05:20 The reality of cosmetic surgery? ‘You look like a monster before you look pretty’
07:18 Gao Liu: ‘I wanted to become more beautiful’
10:08 ‘I thought I was going to lose my nose’
11:32 Guangzhou Health Commission conducts an investigation
12:30 Is Dr He Ming still operating?
13:02 Analysing beauty via AI apps
15:29 Why is China experiencing a surge in cosmetic surgery?
17:20 A rise in corrective surgery: ‘Why go to a beauty salon for medical treatment?’
21:21 Gao’s botched surgery: a professional opinion
25:07 ‘My botched nose surgery ruined my acting career’
29:38 Undercover to investigate the ‘Nose King of Guangzhou’
34:40 Recruited: ‘Beauty consultant’ clinic jobs turn employees into patients
36:29 Pressurised into taking high-interest loans for surgery
41:02 A legacy of long-term debt
43:08 A path to recovery?
46:17 ‘Making the right choice saves you a lot of trouble later’

🎞️ To watch more investigative journalism from our award-winning BBC Eye team check out this documentary playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLz_B0PFGIn4fa8LK1lptsvoA_spfJhzda

🎧 Listen to The Documentary podcast exploring this investigation here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3ct7y7t

🎞️ Watch this documentary in CHINESE here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHUPuJ7mXpU
…and in INDONESIAN here: https://youtu.be/R_1YfHZdvDM
…and in VIETNAMESE here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtKN7IiN8-U
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