Trends in Lip Dimensions of Vogue Cover Models From 1980 to 2023

The authors sought to analyze lip dimensions of Vogue magazine cover models in order to quantify trends in lip dimensions over time. As a secondary objective, the authors aimed to characterize the relationship of these lip dimensions to trends in plastic surgery.

Three hundred seventy-four Vogue covers from January 1980 to September 2023 were analyzed, excluding covers with multiple people, profile views, and poor image quality. Two researchers measured upper lip, lower lip, and upper lip peak thicknesses, chin length, face length, and interpupillary distance. Ratios of upper to total lip thickness, upper to lower lip thickness, total lip thickness to face length, total lip thickness to chin length, and total lip thickness to interpupillary distance were compared between decades using ordinary 1-way analysis of variance with Tukey multiple comparisons. These ratios were also compared before and after 2004, a year in which the number of Food and Drug Administration-approved injectables increased dramatically, and May 2015, when Google searches for "lip filler" peaked, using 2-tailed unpaired t tests.

Upper to total lip thickness ratio increased over time with significant differences between 1980s and all other decades (1980s vs 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, and 2020s [0.3654 vs 0.3870 (P = 0.0159), 0.4018 (P ≤ 0.0001), 0.4024 (P ≤ 0.0001), and 0.4289 (P = 0.0011)] with a suggestive upward trend. Similarly, upper to lower lip thickness ratio increased over time [0.5852 vs 0.6479 (P = 0.0096), 0.6804 (P ≤0.0001), 0.6837 (P ≤ 0.0001), and 0.7571 (P = 0.0015)]. There were significant increases in upper to total and upper to lower lip thickness ratios from pre- to post-2004 and suggestive increases from pre to post-May 2015 time periods.

The authors conclude that upper lip dimensions of Vogue cover models seem to be increasing relative to total lip dimensions over time and mirror trends in plastic surgery.