Bristol Explains Her New Face

Yes, Bristol Palin did indeed have surgery at the end of last year, but not the kind you might think. The 20-year-old explains to Us the reason she looks so different these days: jaw surgery. Corrective jaw surgery. "It's not plastic surgery," she says. "Yes, it improved the way I look, but this surgery was necessary for medical reasons ... so my jaw and teeth could properly realign." And thank goodness for journalism: The AP reports that Palin's "new look" includes a 5-pound weight loss.

While growing up, she wore braces and a device to fix an overbite, but always knew she'd need surgery, she says. As for cosmetic surgery, she'd never get it "unless I got in an accident or something terrible and got disfigured," she says. Even so, she is happy with the side effects of the jaw surgery: "I look older, more mature, and don't have as much of a chubby little baby face!" Compare and contrast her new and old looks here or click to see one or two amusing reactions to Bristol's explanation. (More Bristol Palin stories.)