Tongue piercings cause infection and other complications

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Tongue piercings cause infection and other complications

The American Dental Association (ADA) opposes oral (tongue, lip, or cheek) piercing. The ADA even calls it a public health hazard! Why?
Piercing parts of your body other than your ear lobe is generally risky for a number of reasons.
The U.S. and Canadian Red Cross will not accept blood donations from anyone who has had a body piercing within a year. Why?
Because both procedures can causes diseases that are spread via blood—such as Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C. There are no cures for these viral illnesses that can harm your liver and even be fatal. Now, there’s a new danger being reported.
HealthDay reported,  “Stainless steel studs may collect more bacteria than plastic studs, potentially increasing the risk of infection and other complications,” according to a study in the Journal of Adolescent Health.
Researchers recruited students “whose tongues had been pierced for at least six months” and then randomly replaced the students’ studs with “one of four common piercing materials: stainless steel, titanium, or one of two types of plastic.”
The studs were removed after “two weeks”; and microbiological samples showed that “18 bacterial species were more abundant in the piercing site than on the tongue and six species were more prevalent on studs than the tongue.”
Stainless steel studs were the “biggest culprit, accounting for the highest bacteria counts, followed, to a much lesser degree, by titanium studs.”
For more information on tongue piercing, visit the American Dental Association. http://www.ada.org/1891.aspx
And, know that other risks of having a body part pierced (except the ear lobe) are:

  • Infection
  • Scarring (especially facial tissues like around the lips or eyes)
  • Skin allergies to the jewelry that’s used
  • Boils (infections under the skin)
  • Permanent holes or deforming scars in your nose or eyebrow
  • Chipped or broken teeth (in the case of tongue piercing)
  • A speech impediment (while the tongue jewelry is in place)
  • And rarely, tetanus or AIDS infection

 
 

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