Baby piercings: Taste or torture?

That is what one ear piercing artist told us after we enquired about getting our fictional one-year-old's ears done over the phone.

We were busy calling 10 piercing establishments across the region to find out whether they'd pierce our 'child's' ears. We quickly learned there's no industry-wide standard.

Why did we do that?

Because when a video of a baby getting its ears pierced went viral online last week, thousands of people had something to say about it.

The clip showed a child, less than a year old, having each ear pierced separately. After the first click of the gun, the baby cried.

Clearly distressed, she wriggled furiously while the woman holding her had to pin her head in place to get the second ear pierced too.

It seemed cruel beyond reason.

Many commented, comparing it to child abuse. "How could the parents be so vain?" someone asked, while another said: "Why would you inflict that kind of severe pain on a baby? It's cruel!"

Others thought that it was all a fuss over nothing: "Severe pain, are you kidding? If you think ear piercing is severe pain you have no idea what real pain is."

Another popular comment was that it 'looked cute'.

While many engaged in heated discussion, most agreed that it should be a personal decision that the parents should make.

We thought there must be more to it than that, that there must be regulations in place.

We were shocked to learn it's not the case. There is no legal minimum age to have a child's ears pierced. A campaign to enforce one was circulated last year, gathering the support of more than 76,000 people.

If you're going to get your child's ears pierced then make sure you choose somewhere clean, reputable and licensed.

Here's a list of questions you should be asking and looking out for. If they don't adhere, look elsewhere.

• Do they use a clean pair of disposable surgical gloves for each customer?

• Do they wash their hands up to the elbow before carrying out your piercing?

• Is the shop clean, with wipe-clean surfaces throughout, including the floor?

• Do they use single-use needles and throw them away after each piercing?

• Are instruments kept in sealed packaging ready for use, or in a steriliser until needed?

• Is the piercer wearing clean, practical clothing, with long hair tied back?

• Has the jewellery been pre-sterilised?

• Have they covered any cuts or wounds on their hands with waterproof dressings?

• Does the piercer have a clear policy regarding age restrictions and parental consent?

• Is the piercing area a no-smoking zone?

• Are food and drink banned?

• Are animals banned from entering the shop?

• For an initial piercing, you should also ask what type of jewellery is being used – this should only be titanium.

• You should not ask for a piercing to be performed using your own jewellery, and the piercer shouldn’t ask you to bring in your own.

In order to be able to perform body piercings, a business must register with the environmental health department of their local council. Aside from this, there seems to be little to no other regulations in place.

We contacted the British Body Piercing Association to find out how they advise their members (it's not a necessity for practitioners to join). The organisation's code of practice and ethics includes key points such as cleanliness and best practice.

Clause 10 states: "All associates, members and fellows agree not to give anybody a piercing under the age of 14 years. 14 to 16-year-olds must bring a parent or guardian with them and below the neck piercings and tongues is at the discretion of the piercer."

Of our 10 sites called, eight of them said no straight away, each stating different ages that the child would need to be before they'd perform the procedure. Three said that their minimum age limit was six, while two more said that they wouldn't consider it until a child was at least 10. "We pierce with a needle and so it can be a bit traumatic for them," a lady told us, kindly, as she declined.

One tattoo shop, which also performs piercings, laughed when we told them the age of our 'child' and said absolutely not – and they didn't know anyone that would.

The seventh said that a child would need to be over the age of seven, and the eighth said to go back when the baby was 18 months old.

Only two businesses agreed to perform the piercing. The first of these agreed as long as we could confirm that the child was up-to-date with her tetanus jabs. The last one was brutally honest, though didn't ask about injections.

Truthfully, it made us feel very uncomfortable.

Amelia Mason is a mother of two from Wolverhampton. Her daughter Florence is 15 months old, and Amelia would never dream of piercing her ears: "I think it's torture. Why would you want to put big sharp needles through a tiny child's ear when they can't make a decision for themselves?

"Flo can have hers done when she's old enough to understand that it will hurt, and after knowing that, if she still wants it done then fine."

But trained piercer Harley Bate, 21, has performed the procedure on many young children's ears. She worked at Claire's Accessories in Merry Hill Centre for 18 months, and she doesn't think that piercing baby's ears can be labelled 'torture'.

She said: "When I was trained to become an ear piercing specialist for the store I was already familiar with the ear piercing policies for the company, one of which was that the minimum age for children to have their ears pierced is four and a half months.

"It was essential that we ensured the child had received all the required injections before we pierced – we would request to see the 'red baby book' to check.

"Almost every day we would have requests from parents to pierce their children of all ages. The youngest child that I have pierced was exactly four-and-a-half months old.

"It was important to us that the children were calm and still so that he job could be done safely and accurately.

"If the child was unsettled and agitated we would not carry out the procedure and advise parents to come back another time. On many occasions the children would cry and it was always upsetting. But the parents were always supportive, using toys to help them calm down.

"The station where I pierced was exposed to passers by. As a result, sometimes when piercing a very young child, people would shout abuse. This was upsetting for me and the parents of the child I was piercing.

"I am not a parent so I can't relate as much as others. Personally, I wouldn't have my child's ears pierced until they asked me. I think it would be more enjoyable to see them smile at the end. However I would never judge a parent for having their babies' ears pierced. My parents had mine done when I was 10 months old and I couldn't ask for better parents. To make accusations to parents that they are torturing their children is wrong."

• Would you consider getting such a young child’s ears pierced? Let us know at newsdesk@expressandstar.com