Fashion ke liye kuchh bhi karega..

Fashion ke liye kuchh bhi karega...that seems to be the Gen X tagline. And so they get tattood all over their bodies and pierced in places that would make even the bravehearts flinch. They squeeze their feet into tiny stilettos and streak and colour their hair till they themselves forget the real hues!

But fashion comes at a price and fads pass with time but not without leaving their mark. Talking about coloured hair, beauty expert Anu Shanker, cautions, "Cheap hair colour may contain harmful chemicals. One may end up with rashes and dryness of scalp. Hair fall might be another fallout."

Body piercing and tattooing also have their hazards. Most such piercings are done in parlours and jewellery shops with dubious hygienic standards. Tattoos, in fact, are a major way of infection through needles. The most famous victim is Baywatch star, Pamela Anderson, who was got Hepatitis through an infected needle while tattooing her now famous barb-wire tattoo.

Dr Amita Ingle, a leading dermatologist of the city, warns against unhygienic conditions in which tattooing and piercing are done. "If the needles are not sterilised there is a huge risk of infection such as that of HIV and Hepatitis B. There may also be a chance of pus formation. While the wound heels it might leave behind an ugly scar," she elaborates.

If you always admired fashion divas like Shobhaa De and Malaika Arora in their classy stilettos, bear in mind that wrong shoes can result in compressed ligaments and corns. "Stilettos can lead to a number of health problems," explains physiotherapist Vijaylakshmi of Ruby Hall Clinic. "The lumber vertebra is affected as balancing becomes a problem. Tissues of the heels might thicken and bones might jut into the muscles making things worse," she adds.

But youngsters remain unfazed. Most of them don't think twice before giving in to the demands of fashion. "I don't think there's any harm in tattooing or piercing," says Rahul Shete, a college student, who already sports a magnificent tattoo on his right arm. But a word of caution, before one succumbs to the needle – listen to the experts and be a tad careful!