Barry Gallagher, a reporter with The Irish Sun, joined Today with Claire Byrne to discuss his investigation into Turkish clinics that are approving "needless cosmetic surgeries" over WhatsApp.
He wrote that he was offered €6,400 worth of procedures, including double the "absolute max" amount of face filler, after approaching the clinics.
Aged 24 with a head full of hair, Gallagher was also offered a hair transplant, 24 dental crowns and an extraction, filler in his lips, nose and jawline, liposuction, six-pack ab sculpting and gynecomastia removal – a breast reduction.
Bariatric surgeries, such as gastric bypass and other weight-loss surgeries, are also becoming more popular in such clinics, despite being much more invasive.
"Bariatrics and cosmetic surgeries, as you said, are as popular as ever and we just wanted to find out how easy it was to get recommended certain procedures and it was as easy as looking up cosmetic surgeries in Turkey, clicking a WhatsApp link and within minutes I was texting a consultant and getting recommendations on what procedures I should proceed", he said.
The clinics asked for full body photos, and used them to make their suggestions. Gallagher added that if he had taken those recommendations, "I would have essentially looked like a completely different person".
He explained that the liposuction was recommended on his stomach, waist, back and chin area, and would come with an added ab sculpting.
"How that seems to work is smart manipulation of the fat in my stomach to accentuate my abs, you don't make them any more genuinely defined. It doesn't strengthen the abs at all. It's more of an illusion or a bit of a trick."
However, Gallagher then spoke to the Chairman of the Irish Association of Cosmetic Doctors, Dr. Patrick Treacy, who said that if anyone who received that treatment then gained weight, they would look "like a turtle".
"Essentially, what's being shown isn't really my abs. It's fat that's been smartly moved around, so I suppose if I did regain weight it would just look completely abnormal."
The clinics recommended filler because they felt he had an irregularity in his face, lips and nose. However, the more extreme recommendation was that of 8ml of filler in Gallagher's jaw.
"According to experts in Ireland, the absolute max that should be going into someone's jaw would be 4ml."
When asked if he felt offended by these recommendations, Gallagher said he put on "a brave face" as part of the investigation
"Body dysmorphic disorder and even just being self-conscious about your body, that's something that everybody deals with on a daily basis, especially maybe in your later teens or early 20s. When you send pictures of your body to what you believe is a medical professional and they essentially tell you that you should rejig your whole body, yeah, it can be difficult to take.
"I'd say it's something that hits very close to home for a lot of people that do seek these procedures."
Gallagher added that the ease of reaching out to these clinics can make it a more attractive option to these very people.
He explained that he was offered a surgery date for these procedures within a month. He added that the consultation with the first clinic he spoke to finished in roughly an hour and he received a surgery date for May 16.
"I would land in Turkey on the 15th and I would then receive my fillers, so that was in my jaw, my nose, my lips, on the 16th, that's the next day. And then I would have my consultation with my actual surgeon that evening."
The next day he would have the liposuction and ab sculpting procedure, and would check out of the hospital the next day to be moved into a 5-star hotel – a process that would cost €6,400 in total.
As part of this, he would have to stay in Turkey for another week, with just one post-op check-up with the surgeon. Once he arrived back in Ireland, he would have been offered 24/7 online aftercare from the clinic.
Gallagher reached out to the Department of Foreign Affairs during his investigation, which issued a statement saying they have provided consular assistance in some cases relating to medical procedures carried out abroad.
They also reiterated their warning about the risks of undertaking cosmetic treatments abroad.
To listen back to the full interview, click above.
If you have been affected by issues raised in this story, please visit: www.rte.ie/helplines.
