Should It Be Legal to Pierce Your Infant Child's Ears?

@ druscilla ever after
I should imagine anything other than the normal ear piercings require some consent. Can't see a 12 year old being allowed a lip piercing.
But I still don't like the idea of a mother forcing a tiny baby to have them
Done. Poor thing probably has no idea--I say it like that cause I've seen babies not even a year old with ear piercings. :/

@ Jenni
A child can have that type of piercing with consent, though. A lot of girls I know got eyebrow rings, belly rings, and tongue rings in high school. I couldn't find my ID when I got my lip ring (I was 19, I think) so my mom had to sign forms for me.

I agree with you. I think a child should articulate their choice for a piercing.

After all, we'd all be pitching a fit if someone pierced their baby's eyebrow.

My mom took me to the peditrican to have my ears pierced when I was 4 to 6 months old, and she did the same thing to my sister. Personally, I wish my mom wouldn't have taken me because I don't wear earrings and because I just don't like the holes, but that's just me.

I agree, it shouldn't be allowed... My mom did that to me when I was a year old, and the holes have never closed up, despite the fact that I have not worn any earrings since I was about 7 or 8. It is kinda my belief that any form of piercing or body modification or tattoos or such are wrong, and while I won't stop any one else from having them, it upsets me sometimes when I look in the mirror and see the holes

My parents were always really opposed to me getting my ears done. I got them first pierced when I was 10 (and again only a few weeks ago), and my cousin had hers done when she was about 6 months old. She never had any real issues. The only issue I have with it personally is that the infant (obviously) can't give permission. Seems a bit invasive. Aside from that, if there aren't any real health risks involved (AKA if the child has had all of their injections and stuff), then it isn't really doing much harm, is it?

Facial piercings are a completely different ball game, though. In the UK you have to be 16 or over to get any facial piercing done without parental permission, and I totally agree with that. I went through a phase of wanting my lip pierced and my tongue pierced and my septum pierced and...well, you get the picture. My parents said no to all but my eyebrow piercing (which ended up coming out after a year anyway), and I'm glad they did. I'd have taken everything out by now, and I'd have been left with a bunch of nasty scars. As it is, I have one on my eyebrow, but now I know that I was being a little ridiculous and my parents realised that it was only a phase that I would grow out of, which is why they said no (that and my mother's disgust for any form of facial piercing). At the time, I didn't know what I was doing properly (I was only like 14), and my parents made the best decision for me. I resented them at that age for not letting me do what I wanted, but I realise now how much better their decision was to mines.

@ everybody dies;
Someone posted information a few pages ago that says a child has a 25% risk of complications.

@ dru sighs no more.
That still leaves a 75% chance that it won't affect a child though. I do see where you're coming from, there is risk of infection and the suchlike, but honestly, if a parent feels that it's alright and that they can look after the piercing, then they should go ahead. Like I said, my cousin never had any real issues, even though she's only one person in the grand scheme of things. I wouldn't do it personally (I can barely look after my own piercings, let alone a kid who would obviously find the whole thing more painful thn I ever would), but I don't see anything wrong with other people doing it either, as long as they trust themselves to look after it properly and try preventing the risk of infection as much as they can.

@ everybody dies;
I think that's true if it's not a purely cosmetic procedure and the benefits outweigh the risks. I think wanting your kid to be prettier is not a good reason to risk their health. Something like a vaccine is.

I, personally, don't see a problem with getting your child's ear pierced. My mother had mine done when I was under a year old, and she'll do the same to my little sister. I don't wear earrings constantly, only for special occasions, really... but holes in my ears don't bother me. I'm okay that they're pierced, even if I rarely do wear earrings. Another thing that I'm grateful of — if I had my ears pierced around 8-9, I would have felt the pain of the needle. As a baby, I don't remember the pain. Also, as a baby, being around four months old, you can't take out the earrings when you get them. When you're old enough (2-3), you have a higher chance to pulling at the earrings and taking them out.

@ soft skeletons.
Actually, one of the higher risks of ear piercings is the baby playing with the earring and either infecting their ear or choking on it.

I think if you can't handle getting your ears pierced when you're a little older you just shouldn't get your ear pierced.

@ dru sighs no more.
Your point is very valid. For purely cosmetic reasons it seems a little silly, especially considering how much ear piercings can hurt when pulled out accidentally or when they get infected. However, all of these things are explained to parents (or at least they were written on the form I signed when I got mines done the other month), so they are made aware of the risks. I suppose it's just a matter of personal preference in this. I don't really think it makes much of a difference. Even if they do get infected, if you've gone to a reputable piercer, the odds of it being HIV would be very slim, I presume. And most common infections in piercings should clear up fairly quickly. I do still think that if the parent believes that they can deal with it, then they should go ahead.

@ everybody dies;
I think it's great they inform the parent. I think they need to inform the child. And since the child doesn't understand/can't consent I do not believe that others should get to make selfish cosmetic decision on their behalf. I do not believe a child needs to give up the rights to their body for cosmetic procedures. If we use those rules, parents should be able to get children tattooed and plastic surgery as they are older, without their consent.

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Does anyone think it would be 'wrong' for a parent to pierce both of their infant son's ears or one of them?

@ dru sighs no more.
And that's one of the two issues I do have with piercing a child. I think it seems invasive, and you're totally right, a kid can't say yes or no to it so why should the parent be allowed to make that decision? I still believe what I believe, but that point is one of the niggles I have with the whole piercing children thing. I'm not completely against it, but I'm not completely for it either. I definitely wouldn't get my children's ears pierced at that age, but I do think it depends completely on what type of parent you are as to whether you would or not.

And for infant boys, I'd say it worked by the same principle. Personally, I think that getting one ear pierced looks a little strange, so I'd definitely say I don't agree with that one.

@ everybody dies;
When something a parent does is wrong, however, I think it is our job as society to step up and demand laws that will not allow harm to befall people anymore. You can't spank your children in a lot of countries. (I'm for that bill.) You get in trouble here for beating your children. You get in trouble for tattooing them. Some cities want to make it so you can't circumcise. It's not like we haven't made laws to protect children from their parents' decisions before.

I'm not saying parents who pierce are bad parents. I think they're making an incorrect decision that they are most likely misinformed or ill-informed about. I don't think most parents would risk their child's health for petty reasons; they've just probably never thought of it in that light before.

Well personally, I can't really relate. I do however have a really close friend who loves that her parents had her ears pierced at eight months old. She gets all those funky earrings and whatnot without worrying about the fear of poking holes in her head.

On the other hand, however, there are those health risks. My brother does piercings and tattoos, and he says that the other guys make him do piercings for kids under twelve, because they apparently don't have the hearts to do it. He says that it hurts the baby a lot at first, but they forget after a few minutes. The place he works at doesn't do piercings for anyone under the age of 1. And they do warn the parents before about possible risks.

For boys, I think it's a little different. There are some cultures that include boys with pierced ears, and that's fine, but not when it's just to make a two year old look like a gangster. When my brother was doing my industrial piercing for me, this guy came in with his two sons and said he wanted both their ears pierced. One of the kids was around two or three, and the other was maybe 4-ish. They were both dressed like their dad, in wife-beaters and baggy shorts. Because it was his job, my brother had to do their piercings for them, despite it all. The two of them left the store sucking on lollipops and looking like miniature rappers. It really surprised me, because I got my ears pierced when I was thirteen and even then people judged me for it. I can't imagine what it's like for those little boys.

@ clark kent
I think if someone says girls can do it, if they say boys can't they're definitely being sexist and enforcing gender roles. If it's not okay for a boy, it's not okay for a girl. It's an ear, which both genders have.

@ dru sighs no more.
I never said its okay for a girl. I just said its different. I never actually commented on girls getting their ears pierced, I commented on babies in general. And then I have my opinion on boys getting their ears pierced.

@ clark kent
I understand that. I wasn't saying you were, just commenting.

@ dru sighs no more.
Fair enough. I've been on edge today. Sorry.

As far as I'm concerned, it's not okay, and it should not be legal. I think the child needs to be able to consent and know what they are consenting to as well.