News

Health Minister considering ban on botox and fillers for minors

Health Minister considering ban on botox and fillers for minors

The Minister for Health Simon Harris is considering banning botox and fillers for people under the age of 18.

Minister Harris says the restriction for minors would work in a similar way to the sunbed ban.

He says some companies and professionals are exploiting young people's desire to be perfect which he claims is being driven by social media.

Doctors have raised concerns about the increase in patients presenting in hospitals after botched cosmetic procedures.

Advertisement

The Minister has asked his officials to assess if there's a need to further regulate botox and fillers and whether a ban for under 18s should be brought in.

There are also concerns around filling material as it is not categorised as a drug but as a medical device, which means it can be bought online and administered by someone with no medical training.

Minister Harris said that this cannot be an area that goes "unregulated or unsupervised".

According to a recent study by Therapie Clinic, 68% of Irish people said that they already have or would consider getting a cosmetic procedure.

Advertisement

File image via Space_Cat/iStock

Advertisement