Simply put, tongue splitting is mutilation of the human body, and because it can be a very painful and dangerous procedure and provides no medical benefit, a person should not be allowed to split another person's tongue.
Laws relating to skin penetration and body piercing are different in each state or territory. In Victoria it is illegal for any person to perform scarification, tongue splitting, branding or beading on any person under the age of 18 years.
Tongue splitting is illegal in Delaware, New York, Tennessee, and Texas. In some states, the practice cannot be performed on minors at all. In other cases, it cannot be performed without the consent of the parent. The practice also cannot be done without the consent of the person receiving the procedure.
So more good news for you: It's totally reversible. In fact, if the exposed flesh isn't closed properly after the split (either with sutures or cauterization), your tongue will just go ahead and remerge on its own [source: Loftus].
The Procedure
Your surgeon may either use local anesthesia (similar to Novocain used by the dentist) or general anesthesia (in which you will be put completely asleep). Once the area is numb, your surgeon will then split your tongue down the middle with a knife, cautery, or a laser.
Surgical tongue splitting may result in inflammation, bleeding (including hemorrhage), infection, and injury to nerves or arteries on the tongue. A bifurcated tongue may also perceptibly alter fricative production. Resulting scar tissue may also affect speech.
Splitting the tongue may lead immediately to various complications, including excessive blood loss and swelling of the tongue, which can in turn cause difficulty with breathing and, at least theoretically, suffocation.
Both segments of a bifurcated tongue are able to move independently, meaning that people with a split tongue have more manual dexterity -- which is said to be quite the benefit when it comes to kissing [source: Siegel].
It's worth mentioning that most split owners feel that having a jagged tongue is more natural to them than when they had the tongue as a whole. Supposedly, it is similar to when you take off your mittens after a long time and spread your fingers.
The court stated that “body modification” procedures (other than tattooing and piercing) that result in injury are unlawful. This may then include other procedures that have become fairly popular, such as ear pointing (removing part of the ear to give it a pointed appearance), scarification or branding.
Tattoos and branding: if you're under 16, you cannot get a tattoo or be branded. If you're between the ages of 16 and 18, you can get a tattoo or be branded if you have written permission from a parent. Ear piercings: if you're 16 or older, you can get your ears pierced without your parent's permission.
Most cuts on the tongue or palate heal on their own and do not need stitches, unless they are very large or don't stop bleeding on their own. Cuts on the inside of the lip don't usually need stitches. If you have a cut on the outside of your lip, you may need stitches.
Many cuts to the tongue heal without complications. However, as with any open wound, tongue lacerations carry the risk of infection. Keeping the wound clean can reduce this risk, but if a person notices swelling, pus, or fever, they should speak to a doctor. Tongue lacerations can also result in scarring or swelling.
If you're under 18 in any U.S. state, you won't be allowed to have your tongue split without parental consent -- and even then things get kinda murky. Although tongue splitting falls under the broader category of body modification, because of its nature, it's generally considered a medical procedure.
If you can twist your tongue into a cloverleaf, you are gifted. It is one of the rarest tricks. According to a study published in the journal Dysphagia, 83.7% of the population could roll their tongue. Well, that's impressive.
Having a split tongue won't affect your speech but there will be a slight distortion of certain sounds that some people might notice.
Congenital malformations of the tongue with- out anomalies outside the oral cavity are ex- tremely rare. The incidence of this malforma- tion is not known, but in a prospective study of 50000 children (3) only one child had a double tongue.
The first modern man to split his tongue is believed to have done so in Italy in 1994, with the procedure performed by a dentist with a scalpel and silver nitrate to cauterize it; the procedure was reported to the Online Body-Modification Archive in 1997.
Club patches and symbols such as 1% are intended to reinforce the fearsome reputation of the gang as a criminal enterprise and encourage threats and extortion against police.
Tattoos and the Law
Yes. It is illegal for anyone to give someone under 18 years old a tattoo. This law applies to tattoo artists as well as everyone else.
A white tongue is usually caused by a white coating over the tongue. The coating can be due to a buildup of dead cells on the surface of the tongue, food residue, or an overgrowth of bacteria. It can also be from dried and caked saliva, damaged tongue tissues, or a combination of all of these things.
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