Ear Piercing - Ear Piercings

The ear is the easiest place to get a piercing; therefore it is also the most widely pierced part of the body. Ear piercings have been around for thousands of years. A frozen mummified body was found recently that dated back five thousand years. The holes had been stretched quite a bit, causing modern day anthropologists to believe that the holes were filled with thick metals and used to fend off evil spirits and bad luck. In ancient times, it was believed that evil spirits crossed into our bodies and by piercing one’s ears with metals, this prevented the spirits from taking over our bodies.

Over time, ear piercing came to represent wealth, beauty, and prosperity. Nobility and high society always had their ears pierced and often filled with gold and jewels.

Today, it is common for girls to get their ears pierced as an infant or child. It has been a fashionable and trendy thing for girls to do at any age, and males have also adapted the trend.

The controversy over ear piercing most recently has been where and how to get the ear piercing done. At mall stores and jewelry shops, guns are often the way ear piercing is performed. However, it has been acknowledged that using a gun to pierce ears is unsafe. Because many piercing guns are made of plastic, the sterilization process can never be completed fully, allowing infection to be transferable. Additionally, those that are trained to use the piercing gun are given a two week training program, where they cannot possibly learn all there is to know about safety. Professional piercers that use needles go through extensive training that can last up to two or three years. They must be well aware of all safety measurements and piercing procedures before getting their certification.

The term “ear piercing,” refers to the actual earlobe. However, there are several other parts of the ear that are beginning to be popularly pierced over the past several years. Some common terms for piercing the various parts of the ear include helix, rook, daith, tragus, anti-tragus, industrial, vertical, cartilage, and conch.