Physical beauty is the beauty of the human body when taken as an aesthetic object,which combines the beauty of the interior and the exterior. External beauty includes the beauty of the figure, the face, grace, behavior, and language. Internal beauty mainly refers to a beautiful heart and character. There are differences and connections between internal beauty and external beauty. Internal beauty is the essential deep beauty, while external beauty is the externalization of internal beauty, restricted by internal beauty.

There are three different levels of physical beauty. The first level is the beauty of natural qualities such as structure, shape, contour, texture, color, demeanor, voice, and smell. The second level of beauty is external beauty, which is in combination with the first level of beauty, such as grace, behavior, and language, which is a combination between natual beauty and social beauty. The third level of beauty is the highest, and is an organic unity of external and internal beauty including character, morality, thought and sentiment.

Medical physical beauty is beauty with the vitality of life. Generally, medical physical beauty examines beauty from a medical standpoint, and draws more attention to the beauty of natural qualities (such as shape, face, and posture). In the field of medical physical beauty, beauty is always retained, repaired, and created by physiology, pathology,and anatomy.

The characteristics of medical physical beauty combines health and beauty. The highest aim of medicine is health, so the pursuit of medical physical beauty is based on health. Being beautiful without health is morbid beauty, which is not worthy of appreciation. Some kinds of physical beauty are not healthy. For example, models have beautiful but unhealthy figures. Some researchers believe that only being both beautiful and healthy is worth pursuing, following the idea of medical physical beauty. Medical physical beauty also values the beauty of the vitality of life. Since the duty of doctors is to maintain health and save life, medical physical beauty is related to a healthy life.

While Chinese medicine cosmetology takes the third level of beauty as the highest,clinically, the aesthetic of physical beauty mainly includes the face, skin, hair, figure,posture, and manner.

Facial beauty refers to the beauty of the structure, shape, contour, texture, color, and demeanor of the head, face and facial features, which is the most significant part of physical beauty. Skin beauty refers to the skin and muscles including the color,texture, and character of the skin. Hair beauty refers to the beauty of the hair and beard, including the color, texture, and style. Figure beauty refers to the beauty of the appearance and shape, including a proper body mass index and proportions, including sitting height, leg length, circumference, waistline, and hip circumference. Posture beauty refers to static beauty when one is sitting, standing, or lying, and active beauty when one is moving. Manner beauty refers to the beauty showed by one's speech,behavior, interest, attitude, and manner. It is a beauty of spirit, called charm in Chinese cosmetology.

Aesthetics is always grounded in time and place. China is a multi-ethnic country with a long history. Due to different psychological qualities and cultural customs of different ethnic groups and the different times, the aesthetics of physical beauty is changed. This standard of aesthetics of physical beauty is taken from both ancient and modern aesthetics in combination with physical health standards.

Oval: forehead is a little broader than the cheek. A rounded chin, and a natural gentle contour line.

Ovate: a broad obtuse forehead, a thin round chin, and full cheeks.

Square: a broad forehead, with a square jaw. A rectangular shape is better.

Inverse trapezium: a broad forehead, a thin and square chin. The first two types are suitable for woman, and the others for man.

Side:a round highlighted forehead, a highlighted nose, harmony between nose,lips, and chin. The bottom of the nose and the tip of the chin form a plane with the lips.

The eyes are symmetrical. The size of the eyes is in harmony with the other sense organs. The eye socket and palpebral fissure are in proportion. The upper eyelids,which slope upward and out, shade less than half of the iris. The eyelids have a double fold. The medial eye forms an obtuse angle, with no epicanthus. The black cornea and white sclera are in proper proportion. The eyelids are not bagged, and there are no dark circles under the eyes. The eyelashes are bushy and can be upswept or straight. The brow matches the facial features in size. The beginning of the brow is on the line formed by angle of the medial eye and the nostril. The brow ridge is on the line formed by the nostril and the outer edge of the pupil. The tip of the brow is on the line formed by the angle of the lateral eye and the nostril. The lower limb and the brow end are on the same line.

The length of the nose is 1/3 of the length of the face. The nasion is not lower than 9 mm. The bridge of the nose is straight or a little sagged when seen in profile. The height of the apex of the nose, meaning the projection distance between the nasospinale and prenasale, is 1/3-1/2 of the nose length. The breadth of the nose is 1/3 of the nose height.There are no nasal diseases.

The oral fissure is 1/3 of the way down, on the line formed by the bottom of the nose and the chin. The breadth of the oral fissure is the length of the two pupils. The arch formed by the upper lip is tilted with clear vermilion tubercle. For women, the thickness of the upper lip is 8 mm and the lower lip is 9 mm. For men, the thickness should be 1-1.5 mm thicker both. The color should be red, and the texture should be moist.

They are white and crystal-clear, with no impairment, and straight, with no gaps between the teeth. Each tooth is small, and the gums cannot be seen when smiling.

Facial beauty shows harmony among the five sense organs more than the individual appearance of each organ. In ancient China, the ideal proportion was called “three stops and five eyes”. The three stops divide the face into three equal parts: the upper stop, the middle stop, and the lower stop. The line between the upper and middle stop should be at the upper edge of the brow, and the line between the middle and lower stop should be at the lower edge of the nose. The five eyes divide the face into five equal parts at the level of the eyes. Each eye takes one part, and the part between the eyes counts as one part.

The texture is springy and not slack. For men, the muscle should be well developed.For women, there are no bulging muscles. The color is clear, and the texture delicate. The skin is moist and satiny. There are no winkles, spots, or excrescence. There is a proper amount of subcutaneous fat. The skin is fair with a little bit of red or yellow.

There is clean hair without filth and dandruff. The hairline is the proper thickness and hardness. The hair is moist and springy. The hair is thick, without abnormal hair loss.

The bones are normally developed. There are no big and protruding joints. The thoracic, vertebra, arms, and legs are well developed. The head, limbs, and torso are in proper proportion and connection. The proportions follow the golden mean, meaning the ratio of any two is more than 0.618. Well-proportioned body type:

Front: the shoulders are broad and symmetrical. There is no lateral bending of the spine.

Side:there is a normal spinal curve. The thorax forms a “v”. For women, the full breasts and full buttocks form an “s”. There is a thin and chubby low back and a fl at abdomen. For men, there are visible muscles on the abdomen. There are long legs and fine lines on the thigh. The fibula is highlighted.

Posture includes standing and sitting, as well as walking, expression, and limb movement.

The longitudinal axis of the head, torso, and leg are on the same line. The neck is straight, chest out, abdomen curled in, buttocks firm, and shoulders relaxed. The arms hang down naturally with the hands relaxed. The legs are straight and together. The heels form an angle of about 45°-60°. The weight should be on the front part of the arch.

The chest is out, the abdomen curled in, and the posture dignified. The limbs should be in the proper position. The palms should be down when resting on an armrest, or naturally extended with the hands on the knees. The legs should not be too far apart. For women,the legs should be together in front or side direction, or with knees one side while foot other side, the outside feet going forward a little bit.

Keep the same beautiful standing posture. When walking, the eyes should look toward the front horizontally with the lower jaw slightly tucked in, and the shoulders stable. The arms swing naturally, with the knees facing front and the toes pointing out. The heels should land before the sole. The heels are in the same line, with the knees not bending too much. The step should be 1 feet long. For women, the feet should not lift too high. When going upstairs, the upper part of body should be straight with the soles on the floor. Bend the knees and contract the gluteus when going upwards. When going downstairs, bend the knees gently and touch the ground with the sole of the foot, toes out. The upper part of the body is straight.

The active beauty of expression and movement is different from person to person, and a standard cannot be given.

Spirit: the person has a lofty character, cultivated tastes, great ambition, makes progress in an active way, and is energetic, positive, kind, and honest.

Deportment: the person has fashionable clothing, a beautiful face, refined and smooth speech, behaves with propriety, and is natural and unrestrained.Traditionally, women should be virtuous and graceful or bright and cheerful. Men should be stable and honest or humorous and witty.

What is the aesthetic significance of yin-yang and the five phases, zhonghe, wenzhi,and charm in Chinese cosmetology?

How many levels of physical beauty are there? What is the meaning of each level?

Which level of beauty is pursued by Chinese cosmetology?

What are the characteristics of medical physical beauty?