Francesca Carpenter, Contributor

Can you imagine popping out in your lunch break only to return with fuller breasts? Well, thanks to one of the United Kingdom's latest body-contouring treatments, it won't be long before this fantasy becomes a reality.

Created by Q-Med, the Swedish company behind the popular wrinkle-eraser Restylane, Macrolane is the magical potion that could help boost women's confidence worldwide. It was initially launched in Europe as a correctional filler for body indentations. It wasn't until it's use in Japan three and half years ago that it really found its niche, offering a nation of comparatively flat-chested women the chance to increase their breast size without surgery, scarring or hospital downtime. So far, a staggering 30,000 Japanese women have chosen Macrolane to boost their assets.

The procedure

So what is the procedure? Well, it takes about 45 minutes and involves a tiny incision being made in the crease under each breast, so that a gel filler made of hyaluronic acid can be pumped in through a flexible knitting needle-size canula. There is no general anaesthetic and you don't even need to take time off work to recover afterwards.

Too good to be true? Well, with a whopping price tag of $28,000 and annual 'top ups' totalling $19,600 necessary to maintain shape, it is certainly not a cheap option. Indeed, with current breast implants costing around $56, 000. one might ask why these women don't just go under the knife?

Because breast augmentation operations can be rife with complications. In addition to the risks from anaesthesia, surgical risks include infection and hematoma (blood or tissue fluid collecting around an implant), both of which can range from mild to severe. Surgical risks are highest immediately around the time of surgery, but complications can require additional surgery later, which will have similar risks to the initial surgery.

Furthermore, a woman may need to face these surgical risks several times if she decides to have broken or damaged implants replaced with new ones. Loss of nipple sensitivity or painfully sensitive nipples is common. Some women are dissatisfied with the cosmetic results of breast implants, because their breasts look or feel unnatural or asymmetrical, or they can hear a 'sloshing sound' from saline-filled implants. Feeling nautious yet? It is easy to see why many women are surgery shy!

Much safer

Because there is no operation, none of the above is possible with Macrolane. Practitioners stress that it is much safer than implants as the gel is made of stabilised, non-animal hyaluronic acid, a substance that occurs naturally in the body. And a year or so after the jab, the gel breaks down - "something that appeals to women who prefer to take a more natural approach to beauty" Macrolane UK. Natural? I thought natural was being happy with what God gave you.

Sources www.macrolaneuk.com