The last I heard, the fountain of youth is still an elusive dream, but that doesn’t mean man can’t give nature a helping hand. As we approach that time of the year when we exhibit more of our body beautiful – and not so beautiful – at beaches, golf courses, outdoor tennis courts, and barbecues, which many New Yorkers are doing, it’s turning out to be a boon for the city’s cosmetic plastic surgeons.

“People are getting ready for summer: They want to get their bodies in shape and business is booming,” one of the city’s leading plastic surgeons, Dr. Michelle Copeland, says. She says she’s done a record number of cosmetic procedures so far this year, up about 20% from a year ago.

Why the boom?

“Because cosmetic surgery is no longer just the province of the rich and famous; it has gone mainstream,” Dr. Copeland says. “You’re right, it’s not cheap, but with age breeding body imperfections, people are somehow finding the money.”

The figures attest to the boom in cosmetic surgery. Last year saw a record 10.2 million cosmetic procedures (as opposed to reconstructive surgery) that ran the body-conscious $9.4 billion, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. This compares with 9.2 million procedures in 2004 at a cost of $8.4 billion. In 2000, the nation’s roughly 6.5 million plastic surgeons performed 7.4 million procedures, charging patients an aggregate $7.4 billion.

Industry estimates put this year’s procedures at about 11 million at a cost of about $10.4 billion, with roughly 10% of them occurring in New York City, a hub for cosmetic surgery.

That means New Yorkers are doling out big bucks for such increasingly popular procedures as fat-eliminating liposuction; eyelid and nose surgery; tummy tucks; buttock, thigh, and forehead lifts; breast enhancement and reduction, and facelifts.

Don’t think it’s just women: Men are joining the body-enhancing fray in a big way, with their number of cosmetic procedures up 16% in the past five years, ASOPS reports. All told, males now account for about 12% of all such procedures, or roughly 3 times the number in 2000.

Younger people, including teenagers, are also getting into the act in a much more aggressive way.

Dr. Nicolas Tabbal, rated by one of his well-known peers as the city’s premier plastic surgeon, figures a more vigorous stock market is a major contributor to this year’s sharp increase in cosmetic procedures. “I think we’re now back to pre-9/11 levels in 2001,” after which, he says, the business was affected by a sense of uneasiness and uncertainty following the terrorist attacks on America. “Business is strong and we’re in a growth mode again,” says Dr. Tabbal, who estimates his present level of procedures is up about 10% to 15% from last year.

Chief among his strongest current activities are face-lifts (averaging about $11,000), nose surgery ($8,000), and eyelid surgery (around $7,000). These prices are strictly for the surgical procedure and exclude anesthesia.

The hottest trends in cosmetic surgery, Dr. Tabbal tells me, are the exploding use of injectables, such as soft-tissue fillers like collagen, and of Botox, a purified protein that is basically applied to the forehead and around the eyebrows to relax the muscles and abolish or soften the wrinkles.

In terms of the business, the good doctor called attention to a disturbing problem: the rising costs of malpractice insurance. Last year, such insurance ran him $55,000, up from $40,000 a few years ago. “It’s running higher than the rate of inflation,” he says.

Veteran plastic surgeon Dr. Darrick Antell, who is associated with Lenox Hill Hospital and is a New York spokesman for ASOPS, says the big trend in cosmetic surgery this year is the ongoing growth of smaller procedures that are characterized by shorter recovery periods and fewer complications. Such smaller incursions also can be used to refresh a previous face-lift.

Dr. Antell, about 15% of whose patients are men, also is experiencing what he says is “very strong activity,” with the number of his procedures this year up about 10% to 15% versus last year’s levels. Given a growing and aging baby boomer population, rising disposable income, and a mounting view that plastic surgery is an extension of good hygiene, Dr. Antell figures the demand for cosmetic surgery has nowhere to go but up.

Among his more active procedures are liposuction involving the tummy, thighs, and sides of the abdomen and the breast (ranging from $2,500 to $7,500), nose reshaping ($3,000 to $6,500), eyelid surgery ($6,000 for both lids), breast enhancement ($6,500), and breast reduction ($12,000 to $15,000).

I tried reaching one of the city’s more renowned plastic surgeons, Dr. Daniel Baker, but an assistant explained: “He’s so busy, he just doesn’t have a moment to talk.”

If you’re ever thinking of changing your profession for one that pays big bucks, you might want to consider being a plastic surgeon. In New York City, one prominent retired plastic surgeon estimates, annual incomes range from $300,000 to $500,000 for those involved in reconstructive surgery and $5 million to $10 million for the top players in cosmetic surgery.