Inside: How to Care for a Nose Piercing?
A new nose piercing requires frequent cleanings. Like any new piercing, regular cleanings help keep debris out of the piercing while also preventing infection.
However, the aftercare doesn’t stop there. You’ll need to regularly ensure your nose piercing and jewelry are both in good shape to prevent any future problems.
How to Care for a Nose Piercing
The first step to nose piercing aftercare is cleaning. Your piercer will recommend a saline rinse to use at least twice per day.
You’ll also want to make sure you leave the original jewelry in place until the piercing heals. Changing out the jewelry puts you at risk for infection. Also, you risk letting the piercing hole close up.
Don’t touch the piercing unless you’re cleaning it with recently washed hands — you may accidentally introduce bacteria and cause an infection.
An untreated nose piercing infection can lead to nasal trauma and a host of other symptoms, including breathing difficulties and a change in the shape of your nose.
Cleaning Your Nose Ring
You’ll need to clean a new nose piercing twice a day, but you can do it more often.
After several months, when your piercing has completely healed, you can transition to fewer saline rinses and soaks by using them only if the piercing area is dirty or oily. You can also start using mild, unscented soap for healed nose piercings only.
In addition to cleaning your nose piercing, it’s important to clean your nose jewelry, too. This helps to get rid of any oil, dirt, or debris that’s stuck to the jewelry. You may also rinse away potential infection-causing bacteria.
New piercings require cleaning around and beneath the stud. As you switch to other types of jewelry while your piercing heals, it’s helpful to clean the jewelry any time you clean the piercing. This may be done with regular saline solution or regular soap and water.
If you wear silver jewelry in your nose, you’ll also want to occasionally clean it with professional silver jewelry cleaner. This helps to get rid of any corrosion that could potentially get stuck in your piercing.
The Don’ts of Caring for a Nose Piercing
Now that we have talked about how to care for your nose piercing, let’s talk about what NOT to do!
- Don’t apply over-the-counter antiseptics, including Neosporin. If you think your piercing is getting infected, continue your saline rinses and see your piercer for advice.
- Don’t use hydrogen peroxide — this will cause irritation in the piercing.
- Do Not twist or play with your nose jewelry, as this will irritate the piercing.
- Don’t touch your piercing with dirty hands.
- Never share nose rings or studs with other people.
- Don’t ever force a ring back into the piercing hole. This can damage your skin. If it’s not going in right away, gently insert the ring in a clockwise motion until it sets.