Aesthetic enhancements have long been growing among men, and the reduced stigma around them is making way for a new wave of treatments from ‘brotox’ to hair transplants, and liposuction for ‘CEO belly’. Last year, the British College of Aesthetic Medicine reported that survey results showed a 70 per cent rise in men getting aesthetic treatments since 2021.
And a 2023 report from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) said: “Men are also discovering how Botox injections can quickly boost their looks, giving them what’s known as the ‘executive edge’. ‘Brotox’, a mashup of brother and Botox, grew 5.55 per cent among male patients in the last year.”
Other popular treatments included tightened tummies, eyelid lifts, and face-shaping procedures, with consistent growth showing a reduction in stigma, pushing the trend forward.
Dr Maurizio Viel, a plastic surgeon at Cornerstone Clinic, said the trend is not unique to Dubai and, in fact, among expats, British men are more open than others, getting Botox, liposuction, and ‘CEO belly’ most commonly, with many even opting for eyelid lifts.
“The key difference is that we noticed that men in Dubai have more time and slightly more disposable income to stay fit. They spend more time in the gym and are more aware of their diets. We see a new generation who are playing a lot more padel tennis and other sports, so they are taking better care of themselves in general, so they regularly add botox, facials, IV drips, peptides and other treatments to their health regimen,” he said.
He says that men “have a slightly lower pain tolerance compared with women”. Typically, when men get married and have children, they are also advancing in their careers, creating a time deficit. Men often find that they have less time to take care of themselves and search for quick fixes, and it gets them down as their bellies start getting larger, they put on weight, they age as they approach their 50s.”
With many now turning to GLP-1s (weight-loss drugs) to lose weight, its drastic shift can accelerate facial ageing and increase the need for skin-tightening procedures, in addition to requiring tummy and arm or body lifts to remove newly loose skin.
The range of men opting for this new lease of life is vast, between their 20s and 70s, he says. “We notice that when we first treated men on Harley Street many years back, this would have been perhaps 20 per cent of our clientele, but now we would say men have increased in the last 10 years from 20 per cent to 35 per cent of our business now.”
Dr Hassan Galadari, based in Dubai, told KT Luxe: “The shift began gradually in the mid-to-late 2010s and accelerated significantly after 2020, particularly with the rise of minimally invasive, low-downtime treatments and increased on-camera visibility from work and social media.”
He says that as treatments have become more subtle, safer, and easier to fit into daily life, they have lowered the psychological barrier. “There is also professional and social pressure to look refreshed and competitive, and aesthetics for men is now framed more as grooming, maintenance, and self-optimisation rather than vanity,” he explained.
The most popular are botox, followed by fillers for structural support rather than volume, skin quality treatments, acne scar management, hyperhidrosis treatment, and hair-related procedures. Surgically, eyelid surgery is among the most frequent, he said.
Most of his male patients are aged between 25 and 55 years. “Younger men tend to seek preventative or corrective treatments such as acne scarring, while men in their late 30s and 50s focus on maintenance, looking rested, and ageing well without obvious change,” he added.
While the stigma has reduced, it has not completely disappeared. In the UAE and the wider region, while men are very comfortable having treatments done, they often value discretion and subtlety, with aesthetics becoming widely accepted as long as the results are natural and not obvious.
“Some men come with almost architectural goals for facial structure, especially the jawline and mid-face, while others arrive influenced by social media trends or specific public figures,” Galadari said. “These often require careful expectation management and anatomy-based education.”
Men are equally feeling the pressure to look good, not least in the corporate world. The ASPS report said that in 2023 alone, facelifts grew
17 per cent, nose reshaping increased 10 per cent, and eyelid surgery rose nine per cent for men.
“Decades of experience are no longer a prerequisite for the C-suite. Instead, industries are seeing growth in younger CEOs and members of executive leadership. Plus, 65 is no longer the expected age for retirement,” the report said. “More men could have been looking to extend their careers by refreshing their looks. A youthful appearance in a competitive job market can be an advantage in many businesses, allowing men to lengthen the years they spend in the workforce.”
At YourGP in Edinburgh, they also say that since the pandemic, the rise of online meetings has encouraged the surge, calling it the ‘Zoom Boom’.
“Unlike a quick glance in the mirror, spending hours each week on Zoom calls gave many men a prolonged and often unflattering view of their facial features. For some, this meant noticing signs of ageing like sagging skin, fine lines, or deepening folds, for the first time,” the clinic said. The rising influence of social media and its cultivation of aesthetic ideals has also deepened the shift.
Hair transplants, less easy to conceal, have also seen growth, both in the UAE and with men travelling to destinations such as Turkey to avail the treatment.
Dr. Vikesh Vij, who is a board-certified plastic surgeon at Kaya Wellness and Longevity, says hair transplant procedures have surged in popularity over the past decade, and it’s easy to see why.
“Modern techniques such as refined follicular unit extraction, robotic precision, and long-hair transplant methods deliver natural-looking results with better graft survival and minimal downtime.”
Just as important is the shift in patient attitudes, she says. “Social media has normalised conversations about hair loss. People share their experiences and results openly, breaking down old stigmas. What was once considered a last resort is now viewed as a straightforward, reliable solution. Patients today approach hair restoration with confidence, seeing it as a practical medical option rather than something to hide.”
From younger men in their late 20s and 30s who see their hairline starting to recede and want to do something about it now, to older patients who’ve been dealing with hair loss for years and are finally ready to address it, the clientele is diverse.
“We’re also seeing more professionals, entrepreneurs, people who are in the public eye. They find that restoring their hair genuinely helps them feel more confident in how they show up.”
But more than looks, most people come in because hair loss has affected how they feel about themselves. “There’s this gap between who they are inside and what they see when they look in the mirror. They just want to feel like themselves again. Hair restoration helps close that gap, and that’s what makes the real difference for them,” she added.
Source: Khaleej Times