Piercing

The majority of those getting pierced and providing this reasoning are adolescents, particularly those younger than eighteen years old. At this age, teenagers are unable to get piercing at any reputable shop without their parent's permission, and as you may have guessed few teens would actually ask, as few parents would consent. Therefore, many adolescents resort to an amateur, a friend, or self piercing, and use tools such as, needles, piercing kits, safety pins, staplers, and earrings. Such resources are very often unsterilized and always unsafe (What Every p 1). Thus, most people who get body piercing done are doing so in the most unsafe conditions and for little reason at all.

The danger accompanied with nonprofessionals and unreliable equipment is in most cases very serious. The most obvious danger in this situation is the great chance of infection. In addition to allergic reactions and scarring (What Every p 1), unsanitary and inadequate pierced openings can cause terrible infections, in some cases to an extent where the individual must be admitted to the hospital. Infections almost always involve redness, swelling, irritation, pus drainage, and of course pain. Areas such as the tongue, ear, and nose, are more susceptible to these infections simply due to their location and the bacteria they come in contact with (You Pierced p 2). Other sensitive areas that are likely to become infectious are those which are usually covered with clothing, such as the navel. This is because sweat is more apt to secrete in these places, and the constant friction from clothing becomes irritating to the wounded site (What Every p. 2).

The biggest danger associated with less than ideal piercing conditions, is the risk of getting a disease such as Hepatitis B or AIDS (How Many p 1). If an infected person's blood is on the needle, or other instrument used, this is very possible. In addition to these diseases, youths who did not get a tetanus shot are susceptible to that as well (What Every p 1). If more people were aware of such terrible risks, I highly doubt many would be willing to sacrifice their life to have their navel decorated, or whatever the case may be. The third classified danger affiliated with nonprofessional piercing, is the people doing the work, the amateurs. In the piercing and tattoo industry, there are no health regulations or training requirements. This means that anybody can buy some equipment, whether it is safe or not, and open up a shop. Because the demand is high in this rapidly growing industry, very often "just anybody" does exactly that (How Many p 1).

Many of these untrained "technicians" are just out for the money and do not care if they are using the proper piercing devices or if they are poking places that are not suited for that type of brutality (Did That p 2). An apparatus often used by amateurs, and very hazardous, is the piercing gun. In the first place, it was designed after a cow tagging device, which implicates its unreliability. Even worse, however, the instrument gets very dirty because it can not be sterilized and so is proven to very easily become infectious. Unfortunately, this does not stop nonprofessionals from using it regularly. Likewise, these people are careless, not only about what they pierce with, but where they pierce. Customers will and have walked into these shops, unaware of different safety precautions, and ask to get places, such as their forehead, pierced. The amateur piercing artist willingly gives the customer what he or she wants as long as there is money involved (How Many p 2).

They would also be willing to pierce body parts such as the neck and arms, although professionals agree that piercing these areas is extremely dangerous because the ornament can easily be ripped out (Did That p 2-3). Even if an amateur would refuse a piercing they know is dangerous, he or she would still be very undependable because as an untrained worker he or she would not know the biological information associated with piercing. This individual could, therefore, very easily pierce a detrimental area or a vital blood vessel. Lastly, untrained piercing specialists are dangerous for a very different reason. Often, people that go to these shops for genital piercing are sexually harassed or even sexually assaulted. The point is when a customer goes to get a piercing at one of the many amateur shops he or she just does not know what they are getting.