The Chinese government has banned television shows about cosmetic surgery and sex changes.

Authorities made the proclamation Friday after recently shutting down a show from southern Guangdong province called A New Date With Beauty.  Officials said the sex change show was "coarse."

The program, sponsored by a plastic surgery hospital in Guangzhou City awarded free plastic surgery and then broadcast scenes from the operations.

The State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) said these type of shows are too explicit and "cheap in tone."

Cosmetic surgery programs proved popular in a country where around one million people are reported to have plastic surgery annually.

SARFT said it was serving notice to producers that "vulgar programs" would be forbidden.

Zhang Haitao, deputy director of the SARFT, said that included any shows depicting violence, crime, pornography and horror.  The restriction extended to talk shows and news programs.

China has tightened controls on TV programs over the past few years, limiting the amount of foreign content and also passing judgment on drama scripts.

Earlier this month, officials also banned the talent show The First Time I Was Touched.

The ban was reportedly triggered by an episode in which a contestant staged a bizarre gift-giving stunt, obtaining a ring from one judge and giving it to another, then calling the second judge "very stupid."

Authorities said the show lacked artistic standards.