How to Clean New Ear Piercings

Getting your ears pierced can allow you to express your personal style as well as open up new fashion possibilities. While much focus is placed on getting the piercing, care must be taken after the ear piercing to ensure infection doesn't occur.

Things You'll Need

• Cotton balls Rubbing alcohol Mirror

Instructions

1. Head to a mirror with your cotton balls and rubbing alcohol. This will help ensure you avoid rough handling and allow you to check the piercing site for irritation and redness. Place your cleaning supplies in reach while ensuring they don't fall into the sink, or onto the floor.

2. Start each cleaning session with clean hands. Wash your hands in hot, soapy water to kill harmful bacteria. Dry your hands with a clean towel. This will help reduce your chances of getting an ear infection. Consider wearing medical or surgical gloves to further reduce your infection risk.

3. Apply rubbing alcohol to a cotton ball to begin the cleaning procedure. The cotton ball should have a noticeable amount of alcohol, without being soaked. Squeeze out excess alcohol from the cotton ball before using it on your ear piercing.

4. Secure the ear to be cleaned while rubbing the cotton ball around the piercing site. Rotate the earring several times to ensure the rubbing alcohol gets inside the newly pierced hole. This also helps loosen any crusts that may be forming around the piercing site.

5. Keep track of when your ear was pierced to adjust your cleaning regimen. It takes four to six weeks before a new ear piercing will be healed. Clean your ear twice daily for the first two weeks and once daily for the next two to four weeks.

Tips & Warnings

• Watch for signs of infection, which can include intense redness, itching and fever. Rinse the new piercing while in the shower to further clean the site. Sleep on clean bedding to help avoid ear infection.

• Avoid touching the new piercing site with unwashed hands. This especially includes the time in between cleanings. Never take out your earring before your hole has finished healing. Doing so could cause the piercing to permanently close.

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish