Is it okay to pierce a baby's ears?

If you saw a couple walk out of a tattoo parlour holding a newly tattooed baby you’d probably be shocked. Angry even. If you were waiting in a supermarket queue next to a buggy carrying a child with fake eyelashes, you’d look again to check your eyes weren’t deceiving you. So why is it socially acceptable to pierce a young child’s ears when they’re too young to give their permission? 

Many piercing salons impose their own age restrictions for piercings but there is no legal age restriction for any kind of body piercing in England and Wales.

In Scotland anyone under the age of sixteen must have parental permission to have a piercing and, according to the UK government’s website, 52% of the population believe this should be the law in the rest of Great Britain. So why haven’t we caught up yet?

Some parents pierce their baby girl’s ears so the gender of the baby is obvious. In my opinion that creates more questions than it answers… Why should piercings only be acceptable on females? Isn’t it easier to tell people whether your beautiful child is a boy or a girl? Does it matter if random strangers know the gender of your baby?

On the scientific side of things, piercings can have many complications- from infection to blood poisoning. A young baby doesn’t have a fully developed immune system so isn’t able to fight off disease. There have been cases of earrings becoming embedded in infant’s earlobes and operations under general anesthetic being needed to remove the jewellery. Extremely worryingly, some babies are pierced before they’ve had their first tetanus jab, opening the door to even more serious infection. The growth of earlobes as a child grows up can cause unevenness of piercings in the ears, leading to low confidence and anxiety.

Many parents pierce their child's ears for religious or cultural reasons. On one hand I do understand this but on the other there are so many religious teachings that support the right of people to make their own decisions.

Although I don’t have pierced ears myself, I’m completely supportive of someone making the choice to have a piercing – they allow people to express themselves. However, I believe it should be just that…their choice.

Have a beautiful day x