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You have discovered that ending your relationship with your love handles is harder than finding help in a box store. Your efforts at diet and exercise have not gotten rid of stubborn fatty bulges, and the loose skin from multiple pregnancies or weight loss simply hangs and hangs. For a smoother and shapelier torso your remaining option is the tummy tuck, also know as abdominoplasty.

With a tummy tuck, excess skin and fat are removed surgically from the abdominal region and the underlying muscles are tightened to create a slimmer and smoother contour. The procedure also better defines the waist. This plastic surgery procedure is a major surgery and does require some recovery. Like any plastic surgery, not everyone is a candidate, but if you are considering a tummy tuck, consider these facts about this common cosmetic procedure.

Your physical condition determines whether you are a suitable candidate for a tummy tuck. Ideally, men or women who are in reasonably good physical condition make the best candidates for the removal of excess fat bulges and loose skin, especially if they have already tried to get rid of it with diet and exercise.

If your excess skin and fat is mostly concentrated below the belly button, you may be a candidate for a mini tummy tuck. In this procedure, there is a shorter incision and the belly button is not moved. There is also a shorter recovery from a mini tummy tuck than from a standard or full tummy tuck.

Because a tummy tuck is a surgery that requires a long incision, you will be left with a scar. To reduce this negative consequence, we place the scar in the lower abdomen that will typically be covered by underwear and bathing suits. And, with proper healing, the scar often becomes very faint.

Smoking interferes with recovering from surgery and increases the risks of complications following a tummy tuck. If you are a smoker, you will have to face quitting smoking two weeks before your surgery and during your recovery. Permanently quitting would certainly be best for many reasons.

You should be aware that liposuction may be used in conjunction with your tummy tuck. Indeed, liposuction might be all that is needed to achieve the desired result on your abdomen. Be open to the possibility that you may only need the less invasive procedure of liposuction. When you meet your plastic surgeon, he or she will examine you and help determine the best option.

When you visit your Beverly Hills plastic surgeon for a consultation about a tummy tuck, be candid about your body-shaping goals. Your surgeon will be evaluating the skin and fat deposits of your body along with your expectations about results. Then, your surgeon will discuss with you what can be realistically achieved with a tummy tuck.

The results of a tummy tuck can be very long lasting if you eat sensibly and stay active. If you overeat and gain weight excessively, then your skin and tissues will be forced to stretch out into new bulges.

A final thought for you to consider about tummy tucks is that nothing is standard with plastic surgery. Each body is unique with its own shape and underlying physical attributes. A plastic surgeon must assess each person individually and perform a tummy tuck that is suited to each body. If you get a tummy tuck, it will be the tummy tuck for your body and it will not necessarily look like the tummy of another person who also had the procedure.