The anthropologist Hans Peter Duerr traces the earliest known practice of female nipple piercing as a fashion statement to the Court of Isabeau of Bavaria (1370 to 1435), queen consort of France, quoting Eduard Fuchs he describes that: ...fashion eventually led to the application of rouge to freely display nipples [...] placing diamond-studded rings or small caps on them, even piercing them and passing gold chains through them decorated with diamonds, possibly to demonstrate the youthful resilience of the bosom.

[4][5] However, the historian Lesley Hall has commented that these can be traced to a few letters published in the magazine Society during 1899, and can be judged as erotic fantasies rather than descriptions of actual activity.

[6] In the late 1970s, the practice was revived by Jim Ward and it was adopted by the BDSM and leather subcultures of the gay community.

[9][10] In addition, many people are motivated to have nipple piercings for personal reasons including self-expression and a desire to feel unique.

[13] As a result of a surge of information claiming sexual enhancement with a pierced nipple, there has been a reported increase of men and women requesting this procedure.

[16] A letter in the Journal of the American Medical Association suggests improperly pierced nipples and scarring may result in blocked ducts.

Several complications resulting from nursing with nipple jewelry inserted can include poor latch, slurping, gagging, and milk leaking from the baby's mouth.

[18] Some lactation consultants say that nipple piercings should not affect the ability to breastfeed but no clinical studies have been carried out on the subject.

The suggested risks include pain while breastfeeding, reduced or diverted milk flow, and the infection of blocked lactiferous ducts.

Nicole Richie set off an alarm at the Reno-Tahoe International Airport as she passed a metal detector with her nipple piercing.