After watching a two part documentary on Channel Four the other night named 'Bleach, Nip, Tuck: The White Beauty Myth' I was absolutely appalled.

Today it is the norm to be unhappy with yourself and to strive to look differently. A smaller waistline, better hair, a nicer smile but I have never considered that anyone should want to become a completely different race.

On the programme was a young Asian mother who was desperate to have lighter skin. She felt that she couldn't leave her home as other people in her Asian community effectively bullied her for having darker skin. I found it so sad that this woman found herself so ugly that she was driven to spending hundreds of pounds on under the counter skin lightening creams, that ultimately, damaged her skin due to an illegal chemical called Hydroquinone.

Another woman to tell her story was Jet, a successful glamour model who is wealthy and thriving in her career. She was so convinced that if she had her nose altered to look more European she would be happier. She refused to be associated with people of her own colour and admitted that she wanted to change her looks because all of her friends are white and she didn’t want to sit around doing drugs. Hello? White people do drugs too! Now I am in no way against plastic surgery. I actually agree with it. But to want make your nose look more 'white'? I find it ridiculous. Granted, her nose could have been a nicer shape but she should want to change her nose for a better reason than wanting to look 'white'

There was a man in the first episode who wanted leg surgery to make himself taller like white people. White people can be short too! I stand a very small 5”2 (and a half!) but I don’t want surgery to look like other European people. I understand the want to change your body but the reasoning behind these peoples surgeries are in my opinion, awful.

The programme also revealed a procedure called ‘face smashing’ which is popular in oriental countries. It involves literally altering the entire face by breaking the jaw and cheek bones then performing double eyelid surgery. This results in a more westernised image. The narrow eyes are larger and the rounded face becomes more prominent with a solid jaw and chiselled cheekbones.

I do not know many people, including myself, who can honestly say that they are totally happy with themselves but if we carry on in this nature we will be a sad identical world who are always striving to be someone they are not.