Tongue Ring Care: Essential Oral Hygiene for Piercings

The tongue is a highly vascular muscle, so the many veins and arteries running through it make it a more sensitive area for piercing than the ear, nose or lips. Because the mouth carries a high load of bacteria, good oral hygiene is especially important with a tongue ring. If you are considering a tongue ring, make sure you understand that a tongue ring piercing requires extra care to avoid infections from bacteria.

Things You'll Need

• Alcohol
• Soft bristle toothbrush
• Toothpaste

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Instructions

• 1

  Remove the ring and post from your tongue. Rinse your mouth, especially the hole in the tongue, with warm water. If you rinse with mouthwashes that contain alcohol or a saline solution, this might sting the wound if your piercing is fairly new.

• 2

  Wash the tongue ring in warm soapy water, then dip it in alcohol to assure it is clean and free of bacteria. Set aside.

• 3

  Put toothpaste on a soft bristle toothbrush. Brush your teeth as you would normally do, using care not to brush your tongue until after you have completed brushing your teeth. Carefully brush the roof of your mouth and then your tongue.

• 4

  Rinse your mouth thoroughly finishing with a warm rinse. Rinse the tongue ring in warm water to remove any residues of the alcohol. Place the tongue ring back in the piercing hole.