Tattoos, piercings, and plastic surgery are among the most common body modifications in the United States. Just over a quarter of Americans had one or more tattoos in 2021. Millennials had the highest share of tattoos in comparison to any other generation, as 41 percent of Millennials had one or more tattoos, compared to just 32 percent of Gen X and 13 percent of Baby Boomers.
Of the 26 percent of Americans that reported having a tattoo, 17 percent had more than one tattoo, while only 9 percent just had one tattoo. Millennials were the generation with the highest share of having multiple tattoos, with 29 percent of millennials. Interestingly, they were not the group with the highest share of having just one tattoo, as 14 percent of Gen X had one tattoo.
Regrets?
Despite it often being said before someone gets a tattoo, most people do not regret getting tattooed. In fact, the permanence is often listed as part of the appeal. However, even if someone might regret it one day, it is not the end of the world, as there are various ways to remove a tattoo.According to a survey conducted in the United States, interviewees who thought about removing a tattoo decided to do so because the tattoo did not look as nice as it used to, or because they no longer liked the design. This could explain why the older generation of Americans regret their tattoo slightly more than younger generations, as 19 percent of Baby Boomers regretted the decision to get a tattoo, while only seven percent of Gen Z regretted their tattoo.
Life in plastic
The body has an intrinsic aesthetic value, but many find flaws in their appearance that cosmetic surgery can alter. The United States has the highest number of plastic surgeons in the world and the highest number of cosmetic procedures performed globally. In 2021, around 17 percent of all plastic surgeons worldwide were found in the United States, while roughly 16 percent of plastic procedures were made in the United States.The U.S. is also the country where the most non-surgical cosmetic procedures took place as around 5.4 million of those took place. Examples of nonsurgical cosmetic procedures include Botox and Liposuction, which were the most searched cosmetic procedures in 2021.
