Tongue Piercing And Your Oral Health

If you are considering getting a tongue piercing, you should be aware that it can have a big impact on your dental health. You should take all the precautions necessary to ensure that you do not end up with an infection in the area of the piercing, as this can spread to gums and teeth. The first major decision you will need to make is which piercer you will use. After that, you will need to select jewelry and learn the best way to protect your tongue and piercing from oral infection.

Ask your piercer a lot of questions

The spread of serious diseases such as HIV and hepatitis C is a very real risk with tongue piercing. You should ask the piercer how they go about making the instrument that is used for piercing sterile. The stainless steel used to create the piercing instrument should be surgical grade. This is because other types of metals carry a greater risk of causing an infection.

Possible dangers of tongue piercing

The tongue is considered the most vascular organ in the body, this means that there are several blood vessels passing through it, and an infection in this area can spread rapidly throughout the body via the bloodstream. A tongue piercing infection is also likely to adversely affect teeth and gums. This is why tongue piercing should be done by a skilled piercer and it should be constantly cleansed in order to prevent the spread of infection. Tongue piercing jewelry can chip teeth if you are not careful, and they may also make it challenging to eat or to talk in some cases.

Preventing infection after tongue piercing

In order to prevent infection, the area should be cleansed constantly. Proper dental care should include gargling with salt and water at least every four hours. Gargling with salt and water will make the interior of the mouth more alkaline and this will stop bacteria from growing. Other natural ways to prevent infection are adding turmeric to honey. You can then add this mixture to some warm milk and drink it at least three times per day. Turmeric and honey help to prevent bacterial infection. Honey also contains healing properties that will help heal the piercing faster.

A tongue piercing requires a lot of time and care. If you get a piercing, it is best to have a strict oral cleansing schedule in order to prevent your piercing from causing dental and other health problems. Talk to your dentist for more information.