Sat, 11/01/2008 - 23:15
I read your paragraph under "Body Piercing Myths" about using sea salt soaks being a wrong thing to use on a healing piercing, how it is actually used to keep infected wounds open. Can you tell me the source for this information?
I have heard people advise people with infected piercings to use sea salt to cure it, and I do not believe that is a good method to use on a piercing, whether infected or not. I am a believer of getting antibiotics to cure infection, but nobody else seems to see it that way. Everyone always says "cure it with sea salt".
I have also heard someone say that sea salt "tricks" your body into thinking the piercing is supposed to be there, so your body doesnt attack it or reject it. Surely there cant be any truth to that, right?
I'd appreciate any source you can possibly give me. Thank you.
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The source of this information was from nurses and doctors of several hospitals in Kingston and Toronto. In this age of problem bacteria, many places are not stitching wounds but leaving them open and using salt water solution and gauze to pack into the wound. The body will heal itself while the salt water destroys the tissues at the surface.
We agree that the only way to get rid of a true bacteria infection is by anti-biotics. Anything else will not do it. We have heard stories that after using salt water, the infection was gone. Well, that is not possible. The only infection that can be dealt with without anti-biotics is a pimple because it is a an infection but isolated in the pore. It will go away on its own as long as the skin is kept clean.
The cause of migration is a mechanical process and there are several factors that can be involved. Overcleaning is the main reason why a piercing will migrate. As you move the jewellery up and down for a long period of time, this breaks down the tissue in front of the jewellery and can start migration.
The types of product used and for the length of time is another factor. Salt water is harsh and dries out the tissues. Since many do not use the proper saline solution from a hospital, a teaspontoon in a cup of water is just too strong and will draw out fluid from inside the body to balance the skin. This will shrink the cells and will put pressure on the tissues again, resulting in migration.
Depending on the location of the piercing, playing with it is another factor. Some young ladies who get their navels pierced keep playing with the jewellery and with dirty hands. This will put pressure on the tissues because its pulling jewellery through dry skin and this will cause micro tears which can again start migration.
So basically, the body does the healing for all piercings and wounds. All we are doing with aftercare is to signal the body to start this process. The more we interfere with this process, the more likely that something will go wrong.
Hope this has helped.
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Thank you so much for the detailed response! Now when people tell me to use sea salt I can say "no thank you my method works better". ;D
Glad to have helped.
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