Reviewed guide

What Kind of Gold Is Appropriate for Children’s Ear Piercings?

The short answer

Keith’s minimum general purity preference is 14 karat gold when appropriate solid-gold body jewelry is used. 14k gold is approximately 58.3% pure gold, meaning approximately 41.7% consists of other alloying elements — and the alloy matters. 14k does not automatically equal safe body jewelry. Tribal prefers gold made specifically with prolonged body contact and body-jewelry biocompatibility in mind.

14k minimum, but the karat is only half the story — the other 41.7% is the alloy, and the alloy matters.

For parents

Gold is not one material — it is a family of alloys. That fact drives every choice Keith makes about gold jewelry.

The minimum purity preference

Keith’s minimum general purity preference is 14 karat gold when appropriate solid-gold body jewelry is used.

The math that matters

14k gold is approximately 58.3% pure gold.
Therefore approximately 41.7% consists of other alloying elements.

The alloy matters

Do not conclude that “14k automatically equals safe body jewelry.” The non-gold portion can differ depending on manufacturer and intended use — the same karat number can hide very different alloys.

Tribal prefers gold made specifically with prolonged body contact and body-jewelry biocompatibility in mind.

Keith’s analogy

Think about the care taken in selecting material that may remain inside the body — or in dental applications — compared with selecting an ordinary decorative finger-ring alloy. It is not that body-jewelry gold and dental gold are literally the exact same alloy; the point is that material selection matters beyond the karat number.

What to ask

What karat is it?
Who made it, and for what intended use?
Is it solid gold — or plated? (Those are very different things.)

When we want to see you

Bring any gold piece you are considering to a free consultation — we will assess it with you.