Bagel Head Trend: Bizarre Japanese Body Modification With Saline, Is it Dangerous?
Known for their fads, the Japanese culture has started another controversial trend called the "bagel head." The process involves injecting saline into a person's forehead to give the appearance of a bagel shape under the individual's skin, which is currently in vogue in Tokyo.
Highlighted in the Sept. 23 episode of National Geographic's "Taboo," the procedure calls for 13.5 ounces of the solution to be inserted into the forehead, which then forms a large welt. At that point, a thumb is pressed in the middle of the obtrusion, which creates an indent. The procedure takes two hours and the highly popular fad is said to go down in less than a day.
Many people around the world are currently questioning whether or not bagel-heading is safe. According to Fox News, Omar Ibrahimi, a dermatologist at the Connecticut Skin Institute and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School told "Life's Little Mysteries" that the risks involved with bagel-heading can be dangerous.
The human body can safely absorb a normal amount of saline injected under the skin, as doctors will occasionally use it as local anesthesia. However, "saline solution that is too concentrated can overload the body's capacity to process salt," Ibrahimi stated.
Hence, if a misinformed bagel head were to exceed a normal dosage of the solution, then it could result in extreme dehydration. Also, if the saline isn't sterile, then there could be "a lot of risk of bacterial or fungal infection," he said.
Most of the pathogens that are found in unsterilized water can effectively be combated by the body's immune system upon entry into the digestive tract. On the contrary, injecting the saline directly under the skin does increase the probability of infection.
If all doesn't go wrong with a person's immune system, Ibrahimi adds that he or she could still be left with permanent skin damage.
"I'd be worried that if people did this repeatedly you might actually, indeed, stretch the skin beyond its normal elasticity, and this could cause permanent laxity."
