Not until the ninth ear piercing did Claudia Tinta from Kingsbridge feel the need to hide her body art from her parents.

“I already had eight ear piercings and my mom thought that was more than enough,” the 15-year-old said. “She strictly warned me not to get more.”

But Claudia did get another piercing and hid it from her mom for two months by wearing her hair down. One day she was putting her hair in a pony tail and her mom walked by. She didn’t say much, but Claudia knew she disapproved.

Still, not all parents are against piercings. When an Indian middle school student in Utah was suspended because she got her nose pierced, her mom sided with her daughter, according to news reports.

 “Getting piercings has been around for years,” said Stephen Peters, assistant principal at Riverdale/Kingsbridge Academy in Riverdale. “Things tend to repeat themselves and now piercings have become popular, especially among the youth.”

Piercings, which initially originated among tribal cultures, often represented social and political prowess. Septum and nipple piercings signified strength among the Roman Gladiators, and naval rings were embellished on the statues of the Pharaohs of Egypt.

“I have been working as a piercer for more than 10 years now, and most of my clients are definitely teenagers,” said Juan Ramirez, 41, the piercer at Modern Jewelry in Kingsbridge. “Ears piercings still remain the most popular, but lip, septum, and tongue piercings are in great demand by teens these days.” 

“I think getting piercings is cool. All my friends have it, so I got one too,” said Matt Cruz, 16, from Morris Heights, who recently got an ear stud. 

“Teens, being minors, are under parent supervision, and thus it is the parent’s decision,” said Peters about the policy at Riverdale/Kingsbridge Academy.  “However, one must satisfy the expectations of the school and not offend anyone.”

The debate as to whether teens may receive body piercings is typically contested between parents and children, but the issue has also been looked at by state legislatures. Unlike tattooing, where minors cannot receive tattoos even with parental consent, New York State does not regulate piercing, allowing anyone to get pierced. But, nationally, 28 states have laws that prohibit both body piercing and tattooing on minors without parental permission.

On its Web site, New York State’s Department of Health does warn consumers of all ages to make sure the piercer, “Washes their hands before piercing and uses clean gloves” and “provides aftercare instructions.”

Body piercings carry risks of blood-borne disease transmission and infections, which includes Hepatitis B and C, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Protection

“Piercings are a way of expressing what you are, but sometimes [people go] overboard, that is by getting multiple piercings in unusual parts of the body,” said Rafaella Gunz, a 15-year old from Riverdale, who has seven ear piercings, the most recent in ear cartilage.

“Getting pierced can be a way to fit in, but then it defeats the whole point of being true to oneself, so that is not good either,” he said.