• Diet Soda or Water: Study Reveals Which Drink Is More Effective for Weight Loss

  Sugar-free soft drinks may be just as effective as plain water for weight loss, according to researchers at the University of Liverpool in the UK. Their conclusion is based on a two-year randomized trial involving nearly 500 people who were overweight or living with obesity...

• Kim Kardashian Is Hooked on a ‘Longevity Capsule,’ but Doctors Sound the Alarm

  Kim Kardashian is betting on more than just maintaining a perfect figure — she is now focusing on longevity as well. One of the star’s latest obsessions is hyperbaric oxygen therapy, a treatment popular among celebrities and professional athletes. Doctors, however, warn that its ability to extend the lifespan of healthy people has yet to be proven, and that some devices can be dangerous, according to the New York Post...

• Your Smartphone Could Be Stealing Years of Your Life: Scientists Warn of the Consequences of Endless Scrolling

  Spending hours scrolling through social media may have far more serious consequences for health than previously thought. According to a major scientific review, excessive screen use is linked to millions of years of life lived with mental health disorders...

• Popular Weight-Loss Drugs Could Deprive the Brain of Energy, Expert Warns

  As GLP-1 weight-loss drugs, including Ozempic and Wegovy, continue to surge in popularity, experts are warning that losing weight too quickly and severely restricting calorie intake could deprive the brain of essential energy and nutrients...

• Cheese Is Fine, but Go Easy on the Butter: Scientists Reveal Which Fatty Foods Are Actually Healthy

  For years, we were told that fatty foods were bad for us: people were advised to replace whole milk with skimmed milk, butter with spreads, and eat cheese as rarely as possible. But new research suggests the picture is more complicated...

• Just Two Spoonfuls a Day: Scientists Find an Unexpected Link Between Tomatoes and Memory

  A diet rich in fruits and vegetables has long been associated with better memory. Now, Spanish scientists have identified another potential link: ordinary tomatoes may influence brain function — and the key could be lycopene, a powerful antioxidant...

• Beauty with a Surprise: Scientists Find Microscopic Mites Under Eyelash Extensions

  Women who regularly get eyelash extensions may be highly likely to have microscopic mites living on their lashes, according to a new study cited by the Telegraph...

• $220 Advent Calendar Packed With $400 Worth of Beauty Products: Charlotte Tilbury Has Fans Going Crazy Again

  Holiday shopping is kicking off with a true beauty treasure. Celebrity-loved brand Charlotte Tilbury has unveiled its annual advent calendar, which has already become something of a cult favorite. And while it is currently available exclusively on the brand’s website, fans have a chance to get their hands on the coveted set before it sells out...

The beauty industry has reached a point that would have seemed unimaginable only a few years ago: it is now possible to alter not only body fat, breasts or facial features, but the shape of the ribs themselves. A procedure known as rib remodelling involves deliberately damaging the lower ribs in an attempt to make the waist appear significantly narrower, The Independent reports.

The operation is performed under general anesthesia through small incisions. Using a specialized radio-frequency device, the bottom two ribs are fractured and then bent inward, creating a narrower waist. The desired effect is often compared with Kim Kardashian’s silhouette — wide hips and buttocks paired with an extremely slim waist.

After the procedure, patients are required to wear a specialized medical corset for 23 hours a day for three months to help the damaged bones heal in their new position.

The procedure remains relatively uncommon and controversial. It is not openly offered in much of the UK, prompting those interested to travel abroad. One company, Snatched Waist, arranges the procedures in Bali and also offers them in Australia.

Among the company’s clients was 23-year-old Australian influencer Matilda Baxter, who has more than 960,000 followers on Instagram. She paid $14,000 for the procedure, while posting content about it on social media was part of her agreement with the company.

Baxter acknowledges that procedures like this can contribute to unhealthy beauty standards. At the same time, she considers her appearance part of her professional image and says she views spending money on her body as an investment in her own business.

Another patient, Samantha Garofalo, works in postoperative rehabilitation and underwent the procedure about a year ago. Before surgery, her waist measured around 69.2 cm, with a target of 61 cm. Six weeks later, she said it had narrowed to 57.2 cm, while a year later it had settled at around 61 cm. Samantha says she achieved the silhouette she wanted and would undergo the procedure again.

However, she stresses that social media usually shows only a tiny incision and an impressive “before and after” photograph, with little discussion of the recovery process. After surgery, patients face restrictions on sleeping and movement and may have to wear a compression corset for weeks.

Doctors are particularly concerned by how recently the technique was developed. The RibXcar technique was created by Peruvian plastic surgeon Raul Manzaneda Cipriani in 2022. There is still little long-term research into its safety, while the procedure’s creator has authored a significant portion of the scientific research on the technique and has a financial interest in its commercialization.

According to Snatched Waist, around 5,000 of these procedures have been performed worldwide. By comparison, plastic surgeons performed more than one million tummy tucks and around 1.6 million breast augmentation procedures in 2024 alone.

Plastic surgeon Ben Miranda warns that deliberately fracturing the ribs carries significant risks. Potential complications include improper bone healing or displacement, loss of the achieved correction, as well as pneumothorax and hemothorax, which can be life-threatening in severe cases.

An additional problem can arise when patients undergo surgery abroad: once they return home, they may struggle to find a specialist willing to treat potential complications.

A procedure promising an ideal “hourglass” figure therefore represents another example of how far the modern beauty industry has gone in its pursuit of altering the body’s natural proportions. If women once focused on changing their skin and soft tissue, the target of cosmetic surgery has now moved to the bones themselves.

Follow NEWS.am STYLE on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram