Thinking Of Piercing Your Tongue? Three Reasons Your Dentist Would Recommend Against It
Tongue piercings are common among young people, and they are often considered a form of self-expression. But, while these piercings may look fashionable, they actually present quite a risk to the health of your tongue, teeth and gums. Ask your dentist, and he or she is likely to strongly insist that you forego that tongue piercing. Here's why:
There's a high risk of infection.
Your mouth is already teeming with bacteria. They're the ones that cause gum disease as well as tooth decay. When you pierce your tongue, you expose its interior tissues to these bacteria. The warm, moist environment inside of your piercing is the perfect place for them to proliferate and cause an infection. Once that infection sets in, you can look forward to symptoms like pus draining from your piercing, swelling of the tongue, and intense pain. In some cases, the tongue may swell so excessively that it makes it tough for you to breathe. Of course, the infection can also spread through the body, causing life threatening symptoms like fever and sepsis.
You might damage your teeth.
Many people with tongue piercings play with the ring between their teeth. Often, this leads to chipping of the teeth. If you do not have a chipped tooth fixed promptly, it is likely to begun decaying – possibly to the point that you must have it removed completely. Your piercing may also cause damage to your fillings; cracked fillings are a common contributor to tooth decay, too.
It will be hard for you to have dental x-rays.
Dental x-rays are an important component of your dental checkup. They allow your dentist to detect cavities between the teeth, look for any signs of infection in your tooth roots before they become painful, and tell whether you are having any issues with your teeth shifting. If you have a pierced tongue, however, the metal in the piercing will prevent you from being able to have these x-rays performed. Though some patients can remove their piercing temporarily once it has healed, others cannot (their piercing will close), so your best bet, if you want to be able to have x-rays in the future, is to avoid tongue piercings.
If you have any further concerns about tongue piercings and how one might affect your dental health, talk to your dentist. As these piercings are quite common, your dentist has likely worked with patients who have had them before, and he or she can tell you about those patients' dental health experiences after having their tongues pierced.
For more information, contact Killar Curt DDS or a similar dental professional.
Share