✅ Implant-Grade Materials — Safe for All Piercings
Implant-Grade Titanium (ASTM F136)
The gold standard for body jewelry. Lightweight, biocompatible, nickel-free, and available in anodized colors. Look for ASTM F136 or ISO 5832-3 designation. ORNA's top-tier material signal.
Solid 14k / 18k Gold
Solid gold (not gold-filled, not gold-plated) is biocompatible and suitable for healed piercings. Yellow, white, and rose gold are all appropriate. Verify it's nickel-free for white gold.
Implant-Grade Niobium
Similar to titanium, fully biocompatible and nickel-free. Cannot be anodized as brightly as titanium but is naturally dark and very inert. Excellent for those with metal sensitivities.
Implant-Grade Steel (316LVM)
316LVM surgical steel is appropriate for healed piercings. It does contain trace nickel, which can be problematic during healing for sensitive individuals. Look for ASTM F138 designation.
Solid Platinum
Fully biocompatible, naturally hypoallergenic, and extremely durable. Rare in body jewelry due to cost but excellent when used. No nickel, no coatings required.
Glass (Borosilicate)
High-quality borosilicate or lead-free glass is inert and biocompatible. Typically used for plugs and tunnels in healed stretched piercings. Avoid cheap or unknown glass sources.
⚠️ Proceed With Caution
Gold-Filled Jewelry
Gold-filled has a thick layer of gold bonded mechanically to a base metal. Better than gold-plated, but the base metal is exposed over time. Not suitable for fresh piercings.
Sterling Silver
Sterling silver tarnishes and can cause reactions in healing piercings. Appropriate only for fully healed piercings with short-term wear. Never use for fresh piercings or prolonged wear.
🚫 Materials to Avoid
Gold-Plated / Gold-Tone
A thin coating over base metal that chips, flakes, and exposes the metal beneath. The coating wears off rapidly, especially inside a piercing. ORNA flags this as a material caution signal.
Mystery Metals / "Surgical Steel" (Unspecified)
"Surgical steel" without an ASTM designation is a marketing term, not a material standard. Without specification, you don't know what alloy it is or whether it's nickel-safe.
Acrylic / Plastic
Porous, harbors bacteria, and leaches chemicals. Never appropriate for healing piercings. May cause reactions even in healed tissue with prolonged wear.
Brass, Copper, Zinc Alloy
Common in fashion jewelry and labeled as "hypoallergenic" or "stainless" deceptively. These metals cause significant reactions in body piercings. Never appropriate for any piercing use.
How ORNA uses material signals
When ORNA scans a listing, it looks for specific material terminology that matches implant-standard specifications — terms like "ASTM F136 titanium," "implant-grade niobium," or "14k solid gold." Generic terms like "stainless steel" or "hypoallergenic" produce weaker signals because they don't confirm the specific alloy standard.
The strength of a material signal depends on the specificity of the claim. "Implant-grade titanium ASTM F136" is a stronger signal than "titanium," which is a stronger signal than "metal." ORNA surfaces these signal differences accordingly.
Material signals are always presented alongside retailer and manufacturer signals — because a correct material claim from an unknown seller is less verifiable than the same claim from an authorized retailer with a verified manufacturer on record.