What happens if you don't clean your piercing with the saline solution?

[rebeccaxhealy]

Or if you clean it, but only with water?
Just curious.

[TikiMan]

Can't be 100% sure and everyone is different at healing but I believe that if you have a saline solution that is correctly prepared to resemble your own body's solution then it should cause osmosis which essentially is flushing impurities out of the wound and aiding your body to heal.
Without the saline it should heal but may take longer as plain water will not draw out the impurities so much so your immune system likely has to work harder.

Don't take my word for it though as I am neither a scientist or medical proffesional.

[dragonsoup]

Or if you clean it, but only with water?
Just curious.

They heal just fine! I've never bothered with saline, just used plain water and I've had some notoriously difficult to heal piercings. If you make your own it's easy to use too much salt which causes irritation and dryness.

[Boo]

In my case not a right lot. I'm the same as Caro, stopped using soaks a long time ago (I don't like the idea of a piercing sitting in a dirty solution) and barely ever use saline. I just rinse in the shower and wipe with sterile gauze if needed.

[-yv-]

+1 for doing nothing with it - just keep it clean by rinsing.

Only time I bother with anything is with oral piercings mainly because the mouth is a pretty manky place - I think.