Most people around the world accept to document their beautiful moments with “selfies”, relying on the front camera of their mobile phones, but they do not realize that these pictures change facial features “for the worse”, which explains the increase in the demand for cosmetic surgeries, especially those related to the nose. .
A recent study showed that people take “selfie” pictures of themselves, at a rate of 450 pictures each year, which indicates the great demand for them, and the accompanying change in the person’s perception of his face shape.
Researchers from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center revealed that “selfies” distort your face, making your nose appear longer and wider than it appears in normal photos.
According to researchers, the demand for rhinoplasty has increased, amid the popularity of “selfies”.
Dr Bardia Amerlak, who led the study, said: ‘There is a significant relationship between the increase in selfies and increased requests for rhinoplasty, especially among younger patients.
The study included 30 volunteers, to explore how “selfies” affect the appearance of facial features.
The volunteers took 3 photos in the same session and under the same lighting conditions, two photos taken using a front camera at distances of 12 and 18 inches from the face, and one taken using a digital camera at a distance of 5 feet, according to the British newspaper, “Daily Mail”.
The researchers compared the measurements of four facial features in the images, namely the nose, lips, chin and width of the face.
The results showed that the images captured by the front camera “significantly distorted the features of the participants’ faces.”
On average, the nose appeared 6.4 percent longer in selfies 12 inches away, and 4.3 percent longer in selfies 18 inches, compared to a photo taken with a digital camera.
It also found that the length of the chin decreased by an average of 12 percent in selfies 12 inches away, and this led to a massive increase of 17 percent in the ratio of the length of the nose to the chin.
Meanwhile, selfies also made the base of the nose appear wider, in relation to the width of the face.
These distortions were reflected in participants’ ratings of their facial appearance, as they were 9.1 percent less satisfied with their noses in 12-inch selfies than they were in digital camera photos, and 5.7 percent less satisfied with their faces overall.
Commenting on the findings, Amerlak said: “With the increasing popularity of selfies, it is essential to understand how facial features are distorted and how patients use them to communicate,” warning that facial distortions in selfies can also affect mental health.
He explained: “Our study also supports the concern that selfies can negatively affect the images that a person makes of their face. We need to raise awareness of the misperception of the face in selfies, and the impact of this on rhinoplasty requests, depression and anxiety.”