Bagel head is a type of body modification pioneered in Canada and practiced in the Japanese underground scene. It is a temporary (6-to 24-hour) swelling distortion of the forehead created by a saline drip and often shaped to resemble a bagel or doughnut. In 2012, after appearing on a National Geographic TV special, this practice became the subject of sensationalism as news outlets worldwide misleadingly declared it a “Japan trend”.
The bagel head procedure was brought to Japan in 2007 by Keroppy Maeda, after he first saw it done in Canada by pioneer Jerome Abramovitch. Since that time, he performs it approximately 10 times a year at special occasions such as underground fetish parties. The procedure involves the subject taking a 300-400 cc medical-grade saline injection to the forehead over a period of two hours, which is then often given a depression in the center, leading to the “bagel head” name. According to Maeda, “The body absorbs it over time so by the next morning it just goes back to normal”
