Buccal fat removal is just the tip of the iceberg

Chrissy Tiegen admitted to going through the procedure in 2021

(Picture: GC Images)

Buccal fat removal. The three words you’ve seen everywhere during the Christmas break, but what the hell do they mean?

Buccal fat removal (pronounced “buckle” not “boo-cal” like I’ve been saying it for the past two weeks, apparently), popularised by celebrities like Chrissy Tiegen, is a relatively simple procedure that slims down the face by removing the little pockets of fat from within your cheeks. “It’s essentially a surgical procedure that involves getting the fat removed from the cheek to achieve a contoured chiselled face,” says Dr Ross Perry, medical director of Cosmedics.