The Female Genital Surgery Conspiracy !

The number of women and teenagers undertaking genital cosmetic surgery in Australia and worldwide is increasing at an alarming rate with them turning to health providers to pursue ''designer vaginas''. The most popular procedure is labiaplasty which is covered by Medicare. Although parental permission is required this procedure has been performed on girls as young as 14 years old. Maddy Silver, Sexual Health Therapist, reports that Women's Health Victoria published a paper last month on female genital cosmetic surgery, which it hopes will help generate debate among health professionals and advocates about how to respond to the emergence of these controversial procedures.

Many people think the external genitals of a woman are called the Vagina. But this is wrong: the vagina is the tube of passage inside, which is not visible from the outside. What you can see from the outside is the vulva, and it is the vulva that so many women would like to have surgically altered. The main features of the vulva are the four labia of ''lips''. There are two outer labia, which are called the ''labia majora'' and the two smaller labia the ''labia minora''. The entry to the vagina lies between the two inner lips.

Some women are unhappy with the appearance of their labia. They may particularly complain about the labia minora saying that they are ''too long'' or ''just ugly'' and they should not protrude. Some women have had their labia change in appearance after giving birth. Some believe that labiaplasty, the surgical reduction of the size of their labia, will make them look normal again.  But what is Normal?  During the last decade, images of female genitals have become widely available on the Internet, adult magazines and in some women's publications. But many of these images are totally unrealistic and don't depict normal variations.

The reality is that people who produce these pictures or films use models with ''tidy'' genitals, not particularly because they want to but they have to.  As far as the Australian Classification Board is concerned, if the vulva is protruding too much it'''too rude'' to show. So it seems many women feel the same way viewing their own endowments. Maddy Silver says, ''Cosmetic surgeons and other health professionals are playing on the insecurities of women. There is a lot of money to be made is this business. Just look at all the advertisements on the Internet.'' Medical experts have warned that some young women who approach cosmetic surgery companies are depressed or on medication, and are being sold operations without preliminary access to alternative psychological therapies.

Francis DÁrcy-Tehan, psychologist and clinical sexologist in Geelong, Victoria, became aware of women's genital anxieties and their impact on self-esteem through her private practice work. She asked women to take part in an online survey for her PhD topic The Effects of Genital Image and Body Image on Sexual Functioning in Women and hopes the research will contribute to improving women's sexual health and wellbeing. In her research, so far, she found that to prevent unnecessary surgery it is important to educate health professionals and the public about the anatomy and physiology of the vulva. She states, '' The labia minora is a highly sensitive sexual organ and plays an important role for sexual response. It is dense with nerve endings and sensory receptors, which are highly sensitive to light touch. It is for this very reason you get the horrible practice (photo) by culturally misguided Muslims doing genital mutilations on their young girls, This dreadfully disgusting practice has been all but stamped out in Australia and needs to be worldwide.''

The Way I See It....labiaplasty surgery can have damaging after effects, such as infection, scarring and painful sex. Sometimes labiaplasty results in painful or uncomfortable labia -- if the surgeon makes the labia too short or sculpts the tissue in a way that can cause discomfort or pain on sitting. I am not sure that these surgeons who are happily cutting off pieces of labia realise the additional problems that can occur with this procedure. I'm sure they will get an ''earful'' when the young lady is not happy, but what's done is done.

The main function of the vulva is to give pleasure and labiaplasty and the Islamic abomination of mutilation has the obvious effect to destroy an erogenous zone and can lead to lack of arousal and impede orgasmic responses. My advice is to seriously think again before spending a fortune on an operation that cannot be reversed and may have lasting effects on your sex life.