Emaleigh Whitwick has her teeth examined by Liran Levin, head of periodontology at the School of Dentistry.

If you’ve been considering getting a tongue piercing, you may want to hold off. Having the piercing may be cool, but research shows it can cause serious oral health problems.

Lip or tongue piercings can lead to fractured teeth, gum recession, bone loss and possibly frontal tooth loss says Liran Levin, head of the periodontology division at the University of Alberta’s School of Dentistry.

“People who are getting the piercings don’t know about the oral risk factors associated with it,” says Levin, author of a study entitled “Alveolar bone loss and gingival recession due to lip and tongue piercing.”

“Patients think it’s innocent fun (getting the piercing). Through our research, we’ve found that a vast majority are unaware of the risks.”

Liran says his research shows that 20.3 per cent of young adults reported having at least one type of piercing in or around the mouth. Swelling and bleeding were reported by 51.9 per cent and 45.7 per cent, respectively. Among the research participants, 57.8 per cent were unaware of the dangers associated with piercings inside the mouth. Clinical examination showed 14 per cent of the participants had fractured teeth and 26.6 per cent had gum recession.

– Tarwinder Rai

Source: Oral piercings can cause serious dental problems, warns dentist