Stereotyping comes from the human being’s need to classify everything in sight. However, it has gone beyond identification and has been retooled to allow for negative body imagery. Sad to say, nothing sets apart the Asians from the southeast more explicitly than their monolid eyes.

But what makes these eyes look less attractive seems to be more of a perception or is it really just another generalization that apparently has a valid truth? Digging deeper into what the naked eyes could not see, we now have a better vision of what monolids really mean and the changes that have been made on them in the pursuit of aesthetic acceptance.

The Monolid and the Double Eyelid

For a better understanding of the issue, monolid eyes are eyes without an upper eyelid crease while double eyelid are eyes born with an upper lid crease. And while other races have eyelid creases too, the Caucasians have a different length, shape, and height.


1. The Monolid Asians

Not all Asians have monolids. That’s right. Apparently there are some Asian countries with more double eyelid citizens than the others and this is an area that is worth looking into. A whopping 50% of all Asians are born with the monolid (Nguyen, Hsu and Dinh, 2009).

East Asians are those with a predominant monolid population compared to their southeast counterparts. The East Asians are those from China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, Macau, Mongolia, North Korea, and South Korea, while the southeast lands include Brunei, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.


2. Why are Considered Monolids Unattractive?

It is pretty common for Asian mothers to give their daughters blepharoplasty or double eyelid surgery as a gift or reward for doing good in school or just with the very noble intention of giving their daughters a good head start in life. The intentions are great and very maternal to say the least, but what gives them the motivation to present a face-changing gift to their darling daughters?




3. The Monolid and the Face

Unbeknownst to many, monolids are physically partnered with traits that are considered unattractive and there is a scientific reason to back it up. East Asians have some of the lowest exposure to testosterone among the other races. Testosterone is key to determining the pubertal levels of the hormone, which is of paramount importance to the development of the key features of the face on both sexes, and that is the high cheekbones.

For men, this translates to a strong jawline and chin with a strong brow to match. This is particularly unattractive for women who are supposed to develop the high cheeks too, but not at the level where it makes her face look masculine.


ALSO READ: [ 12 Things to Avoid After A Nose Job ]


4. Aesthetics without Race

As the complete opposite of the very subtle association of eyelids to being unattractive, a lot of people immediately assume that Asians who want to have double-eyelids want to look more western or would like to be immediately accepted in a western country. This is actually a harsh generalization. Asians are aware of their bone structures and would just like to improve what they already have. In fact, a big majority of these patients want to retain everything else and just want the double-eyelids to add something pleasing to the eyes.

So most Asians just want to give the impression of a bigger eyelid opening. For practical purposes, it also makes it easier for women to put their eye make-up on. So if you look closely, the Asian double eyelid surgery yields some very natural looking eyelid openings, which are very different from their western counterparts.


5. More Women are Empowered

In this day and age, women have become more informed and are willing to fight for their right to do what they want with their bodies. Feminists would argue that your real look should be appreciated. However, on the other side of the spectrum are those women who are more than willing to change their bodies to feel good about themselves and the acceptance that they get when they conform to the standards of a male-dominated society. For them, it is not a sign of surrender. It is a tool they use to be in-charge of their lives.


6. Double Eyelid Surgery

For those who are determined to get those double-eyelids, there is what we call the bepharoplasty (Naik et al., 2009) and a little of canthoplasty (Taban et al., 2010), usually a lateral one. This procedure makes the eyelid structure horizontally bigger. The canthoplasty is done to enhance the corner of the eyes where the upper and lower eyelids meet. Looking at the mirror, the result would be bigger and more appealing eyes.

And again, the eyes do not look better because of the double-eyelids. They create the more appealing look because of their horizontally longer appearance, which gives a more forward projection fore the face in general. Aside from this, you shall notice a shorter distance between the brow ridge and the eyes. This makes the brow ridge appear a bit lower as it completes the better face that the patients want.



The Asian Double Eyelid Surgery

As discussed earlier, Asian women do not want to have the eyelids similar to that of their Western counterparts and this translates into a different set of standards and procedures for the Asian patient. This is important to note because at least a third of those who have had this procedure get it from a surgeon without the proper training and resulted to great dissatisfaction from the female patients.

To those who are new to the procedure, the Asian Double Eyelid Surgery involves the removal of a small amount of excessive skin (or more which depends on the age of the patient) under the skin along with a small amount of fat pads. There is great technical skill needed to pull of the right design for Asian eyes without showing any traces of the incision made to accomplish it.

A big number of patients have the procedure as an outpatient. This means that the surgery is finished on the same day and the patient is allowed to go home immediately after. After the surgery, the surgeon shall decide if there is a need for the patient to stay at the hospital or not.


What to Expect from the Procedure

After the procedure, the crease is expected to look a bit higher than what was illustrated to the patient. But after a month or two, the ideal level and shape that the patient desired will be evident as soon as swelling goes down.


Post-surgery Care

For those who are doing this for the first time, expect some swelling and redness around the incision areas (Oestreicher and Mehta, 2012). Tears may excessively fall as well, but this is normal and will eventually subside. When your eyes dry up, a special ointment from the doctor can use used to make it better.

What might be concerning for the patient is the temporary blurring of the eyesight after putting the ointment. But do not worry, it is fleeting and should be considered as a side effect of the procedure. This ointment should be applied within the first few days after the surgery to keep the incisions lubricated. If swelling persists, gently applying a cold compress over the site can help relieve it.

To learn more about getting Asian Double Eyelid Surgery in Australia, visit us now at Advance Beauty Cosmetic. Our resident doctor, Dr. Andrew Kim, is board-certified to perform the delicate procedure. Dr. Kim is known for his extensive skills in providing natural-looking results that meet the realistic expectations of patients.

To schedule your consultation with Dr. Kim, call us now or simply fill-out our inquiry form today.


Nguyen, M., Hsu, P. and Dinh, T. (2009). Asian Blepharoplasty. Seminars in Plastic Surgery, 23(03), pp.185-197. Available at: [PUBMED] [Accessed 14 Dec. 2017].

Naik, M., Honavar, S., Das, S., Desai, S. and Dhepe, N. (2009). Blepharoplasty: An overview. Journal of Cutaneous and Aesthetic Surgery, 2(1), p.6. Available at: [PUBMED] [Accessed 14 Dec. 2017].

Taban, M., Nakra, T., Hwang, C., Hoenig, J., Douglas, R., Shorr, N. and Goldberg, R. (2010). Aesthetic Lateral Canthoplasty. Ophthalmic Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery, 26(3), pp.190-194. Available at: [PUBMED] [Accessed 14 Dec. 2017].

Oestreicher, J. and Mehta, S. (2012). Complications of Blepharoplasty: Prevention and Management. Plastic Surgery International, 2012, pp.1-10. Available at: [PUBMED] [Accessed 14 Dec. 2017].