INFORMATION AS A PANACEA FOR CREATING AWARENESS ON THE DANGERS OF BRAZILIAN BUTT LIFT SURGERY (BBL) AMONG YOUNG NIGERIAN GIRLS

Abstract

Over the years, augmentations to the buttocks have become increasingly popular, especially among young Nigerian girls. It has, therefore, become necessary to examine the health concerns and societal influences that have contributed to the alarming increase in health complications and fatalities as a result of the procedures. There are several reasons why this procedure is extremely dangerous, and the researchers examined these issues and discussed how librarians can step in to provide useful and insightful information to create awareness among young Nigerian girls on the dangers of BBL. The study adopted a survey research design, and the population of the study comprised academic librarians from four selected university libraries within two states (FCT Abuja and Nasarawa State) in North Central Nigeria (University of Abuja, National Open University Abuja, Nile University Abuja, and Federal University of Lafia). Data was collected using a structured Google form, which was shared on various social media platforms, and a total of 32 responses were collected from the various university libraries. The data collected was checked for completeness and imported to SPSS version 23. Mean and standard deviation were further used to analyse the data collected for the study. The study, thus, revealed that academic librarians in the four selected university libraries are knowledgeable about the Brazilian Butt Lift (BBL), and also various social media platforms, such as Facebook, WhatsApp, etc., are beneficial in the dissemination of information on the dangers of BBL procedures, such as selective dissemination of information and current awareness services, among others. Finally, the study recommended that there should be collaborative discussions between librarians and health professionals on social media platforms to enable more evidence-based information dissemination and impactful information dissemination on issues bordering on BBL. Also, librarians should look out for trending health issues on the social media space, research them, and innovate ways of tackling such issues by creatively putting out valuable and insightful information.