Piercing baby's ears

Real Moms

"I talked to my OB today about piercing my daughter's ears in the hospital. He said he can do this right after she is born, in the hospital. He advised us to go to a jeweler and get the baby earrings that have the screw on back. So, my husband and I will be off to shop tomorrow. I'm really excited about this!" -- Latoya

"Our pediatrician only does this after six months. He says that he's had a few babies whose ears grew after birth and then were crooked or the hole grew, too, so it was too big. I really wanted to pierce my little girl's ears but my husband talked me out of it. For now my little girl wears those body jewels on her ears and she loves it." -- Rebecca

"I'm going to wait a few years before piercing my little girl's ears. My best friend had her ears pierced when she was a baby and now her holes are too close to her head because her ears grew!" -- Kristen

"I know this is rare, but if I wear earrings (silver, gold, surgical steel, whatever) for more than a few hours I get some swelling and irritation, more than a day and I tend to get an infection. With all the silly little colds and infections that a baby can catch I wouldn't want to add another misery to that list. If I have a girl, I plan to wait until she asks and I feel she is responsible enough to care for them on her own." -- mrsz

"I'm really torn on this issue. I think earrings on baby girls look darling, but I'm not sure if/when to do it. I'm pretty sure my OB and pediatrician wouldn't offer much encouragement because they are pretty conservative. I think it's safe to say we won't do it immediately after birth, but after a few months we might re-visit the idea." -- Susan

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