Ear piercing in children has been around for centuries as part of ritualistic and cultural traditions but has continued to become a worldwide mainstream fashion statement.
[2] Due to the pain and health risks associated with baby ear piercing, critics characterize it as a form of child abuse and have called for bans of the procedure.
[citation needed] According to a petition-making website 38 Degrees, Susan Ingram implores the U.K. Minister of State for Children and Families to set a minimum age requirement for ear piercing and make the practice illegal.
Age restrictions, although not imposed, are not a result of medical evidence or physical complication, but rather to protect babies from potential risks in piercing their ears too early.
[6] Additionally, pediatricians from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) require parents to wait until their child is at least 6 months old to get their ears pierced.
[15] At a recent seminar sponsored by the American Academy of Dermatology, Alexander Fisher of New York University said that metal allergies are activated after a trauma to the skin.
[16] Such allergies, with visible symptoms, such as an itchy rash, weeping skin, pain, and in extreme cases, bleeding and pus, are most often caused by exposure to nickel and cobalt.
[17] Keloids are raised, reddened, fibrous growths that usually occur after surgical procedures or trauma and can cause significant cosmetic deformity.