Bristol Palin: I Had Corrective Jaw Surgery (VIDEO)

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) -- Bristol Palin admits her recent change in appearance was due to a procedure - but not plastic surgery.

The 20-year-old daughter of 2008 GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin tells Us Weekly that she underwent corrective jaw surgery in December, a month after she finished third on ABC's "Dancing with the Stars." Her face now appears thinner, with higher cheekbones and an angular jaw.

The new look, complete with Palin losing 5 pounds, was unveiled April 30 at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner in Washington, D.C.

"Yes, it improved the way I look, but this surgery was necessary for medical reasons," she told the magazine for its May 23 issue, which will be on newsstands Friday.

Palin said she had the procedure so her jaw and teeth could properly realign.

While growing up, she wore braces and a device to help correct an overbite. But she said her dentist warned her that she'd have to have surgery one day.

The Palin family's lawyer declined to comment to The Associated Press on Tuesday.

Palin said she is pleased with the new look.

"I look older, more mature and don't have as much of a chubby little baby face," she told the magazine.

Palin said she doesn't obsess over her face and would consider plastic surgery only in an extreme situation.

"I wouldn't get plastic surgery unless I got in an accident or something terrible and got disfigured," she said.

Palin will be back on TV by the end of the year, starring in a reality series for the Bio Channel. The as-yet-untitled series will follow her move from Alaska to Los Angeles with her son, Tripp, to work at a small charity. She will live with actor brothers Kyle and Christopher Massey.

Kyle Massey is a fellow "Dancing" contestant and Palin's good friend, the network said.

Palin can also soon add author to her resume.

She signed with William Morrow to publish "Not Afraid of Life," to come out this summer. Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins, has said the memoir would provide "an inside look at her life."

Levi Johnston, the father of her child, also is planning a tell-all book about his tumultuous relationship with the Palin family.

Touchstone Publishing has a fall publication date for Johnston's book, "Deer in the Headlights: My Life in Sarah Palin's Crosshairs."

Comments

[Emily Clark]

06:49 PM on 06/27/2011

Bristol Palin had the same surgery as one of my good friends and the opposite surgery that I am recovering from. While, yes, it does affect th astetic qualities and shape of your face, it also makes eating, smiling, talking, and othr ay to day activities much more enjoyable. I had a class three jaw, meaning that when I would bite down, my bottom teeth were in front of my top (like a bulldog). I just had a mandibular osteotomy to correct this. Who cares if she wants to have a similar surgey to the one I had. Everyone I told was very supportive because they knew I was in pain all the time. If she was in pain, then why not let her relieve it. Just because she is in the public eye, she is being criticized when this is actually a hugely common surgery. Also, everyone heals differently. I am one week post surgery and my swelling is almost completely gone.

[FiveToOne]

09:34 AM on 06/23/2011

What impeccable timing of this so called "mandatory" surgery, right before a new reality show.

[bagelsaredeelish]

10:40 PM on 06/22/2011

This is complete BS. The only type of jaw surgery to provide results even remotely close to this is major lower jaw surgery. I just got major upper jaw surgery and I was swollen like a bruised balloon for at least 4 week. The swelling wasn't completely gone until about 3 months afterwards. Lower jaw surgery, on the other hand, is actually much worse and complicated. So, unless she didn't leave her house for 3+ months, this "corrective jaw surgery" is highly unlikely. Not to mention you do not miraculously lose all the fat from your neck. Getting a chin job doesn't seem very wholesome or family oriented. Waste of space.

[Veratruth]

03:33 PM on 06/22/2011

Who else was involved in this makeover? Who is her surgeon? Insurance company should know all the answers. Most people have to be pre-approved for surgery.

[Veratruth]

11:38 PM on 06/21/2011

Sorry, this upsets my desire to donate toward any so-called worthy cause.

[Veratruth]

11:13 PM on 06/21/2011

PLEASE STOP GIVING your hard-earned money to the so-called charities or "causes" that dishonest people claim to care about.

[punchedinthegut]

08:48 PM on 05/27/2011

Who cares?

[nowstopit]

11:47 AM on 05/20/2011

I have to admit she is a pretty girl,With a better jaw line, She is nasty
unless she works on that attitude

[katetrun]

11:45 AM on 05/20/2011

To all those nasty commenter's... I have a friend who HAD to have this surgery in high school. YES, HAD! Imaging going through years of painful braces, just to find that braces alone wouldn't help a jaw alignment issue. My friend had pain every time she ate. And forget about chewing gum! Her entire jaw would be so sore from constantly having to physically realign her jaw in order properly chew, because her back molars weren't lined up properly. Post surgery, her face looked shockingly different! So, I totally understand how Bristol could look so different... plus it says she lost weight. BTW, she had high cheekbones already, just like her MOM.

[Godiva]

11:38 AM on 05/20/2011

Right....

[zsaz1029]

05:12 AM on 05/18/2011

It may not have been medically necessary in the "you'll die if you don't get it" way, but these things happen. When I was in my early teens, they wanted to do jaw surgery on me in order to correct an overbite. Family couldn't afford it, nor braces, and now I'm 30 and rather self-conscious about it along with less than perfect teeth.

I'm no fan of the Palins and think a whole lot of what they do is a money-grab, but I'm not gonna hold this against Bristol.

[urMommma]

03:23 PM on 05/16/2011

I am no fan of the Falins, but this look is certainly an improvement! There might be hope for her?

[amaboss52]

06:44 PM on 06/02/2011

No matter what she does to look different she's still Bristol Palin!

[tuliehowller]

08:03 AM on 05/16/2011

Just consider for a moment......this could have been our second family instead of the Biden's....just makes you shudder to think of it!

[maxout22]

07:00 AM on 05/16/2011

This whole family has issues. And then there's Levi.You know it's a circus when Levi has a book.

[KC45]

06:10 AM on 05/16/2011

Poor thing....hope she got a deal.