Breast augmentation procedures have continually outnumbered other popular cosmetic procedures year after year. Don’t let the popularity of this procedure fool you, though, there are still questions that are asked by a large majority of women. Namely, women ask “Am I too old to breast implants?” In some cases, the question goes the other way, with a woman wondering if she is too young for her desired procedure. Ultimately, there are other factors that will be far more crucial to the final decision about breast augmentation, but we have to start somewhere, so let’s dive in.

There is a minimum age requirement (set by the FDA) for breast augmentation. Many people are aware that a woman needs to be 18 years of age to undergo this procedure. What isn’t so widely known is that there is one more restriction: only saline implants are approved for patients under 22 years of age. Silicone implants have a minimum age requirement of 22.

Additional factors that override age include:

• Physical development. Breast augmentation is best performed only after the breasts have developed to their fullest extent. There is no saying that this will happen by the age of 18, or even 20. The initial examination for breast augmentation will assess growth in order to prevent any issues with the final result.
• Through multiple studies, science has determined that having breast implants has no bearing on a woman’s ability to journey through pregnancy, nor to breastfeed. However, there is still good reason to wait until that final pregnancy has occurred to consider breast augmentation. The physical changes that go hand in hand with this life event can cause breast tissue to expand, then contract, then sag. This is true even when implants are present, so why not wait until you know the results you can get will last for many years?
• The patient who is emotionally mature is the patient who understands that there are no guarantees for a specific result from breast augmentation. She has realistic expectations, and understands that, although she will feel more confident about her shape after her procedure, breast augmentation cannot enhance positive self-image if this did not exist previously.

We would love to speak with you about your aesthetic goals. Call our Campbell cosmetic surgery practice at (408) 559-4700.