Record numbers of men are having cosmetic surgery to get rid of their manboobs (a.k.a their ‘moobs’). In the UK and Scotland, the number of men seeking surgery to reduce their moobs is said to have almost doubled in the past year alone.

Gynaecomastia, the official name of man-boobs, has seen a 44 percent rise in the UK in 2008 according to the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) making it the fifth most popular cosmetic surgery treatment for men behind nose jobs, eyelid surgery, ear corrections and liposuction.

With the collective weight of the nation continuing to increase, it comes as no surprise that both male breast reduction and liposuction are some of the most popular cosmetic surgery procedures for men.

However moobs may not just be the by-product of being overweight. Many scientists believe that the number of men with man-boobs is also due to the increasing amounts of the female hormone oestrogen in the environment. This means that oestrogen is regularly ingested as it is present in much food and drink. Scientists believe that ingesting oestrogen can cause a hormonal imbalance in some people and this can lead to the formation of surplus breast tissue.