Many of us will get our ears pierced without a second thought to the risks – some of us were even too young at the time to remember it.
But we’re not just getting our ears pierced these days. We’re getting our belly buttons, noses, cheeks, tongues, eyebrows, lips and even nipples and genitals pierced.
So what kind of risk are we posing to our bodies when we pierce a piece of skin that was probably never meant to be pierced? Are some places more prone to complications such as infections?
Well yes, and no, says Canberra-based GP Dr Gillian Riley.
Listen: Sophie Cachia says her kids Bobby and Flossy won’t be getting any piercings until they’re old enough to ask for it.
Dr Riley tells Mamamia that a piercing in your genitals (which can we just pause to say “ouch”?) poses the greatest risk of infection due to a number of bacteria down there that the wound may come in to contact with.
She says the other places for piercings such as noses, ears, nipples and navels pose a similar risk of infection, which is “reasonably low”.
However, she adds that piercings in the cartilage of your ear – such as the part of your ear closest to your cheek (tragus) – generally takes the longest time to heal.
And it’s while the wound is healing that people with piercings are open to the risks of infections.
This is why, Dr Riley says, people need to make sure they pay attention to the after-care instructions they are given by the professional who pierced them.
Top Comments
A lot of common sense here.
"The skin around it might be red, it might be seeping puss, if the pain level has suddenly increased you need to be seen."
Well, this raised an eyebrow.