How do I stop earrings irritating my ears?

Switch to nickel-free posts — titanium, niobium, 316L surgical steel, solid gold of 14k or above, or platinum. Nickel is the most common contact allergen in jewelry, and plated posts expose it once the plating wears.

Sore, itchy or weeping earlobes are usually a reaction to nickel rather than to metal in general, and the fix is a material change rather than a hygiene one.

Why nickel. It is cheap, hard and used widely in alloys and in the base metal under plating. It is also the most common contact allergen there is. A plated post can be fine for months and then start reacting, which is not you developing an allergy overnight — it is the plating wearing through to the nickel underneath.

What to switch to. Titanium and niobium are inert and the safest options for reactive ears. 316L surgical steel is low-nickel and tolerated by most people, but not strictly nickel-free. Solid gold at 14k or above and platinum are both safe, while 9k gold contains more alloy and occasionally causes trouble. Sterling silver is usually fine, as the alloy is copper rather than nickel.

The part people miss. The post is what sits in the piercing, so the post is the part that matters. A beautiful solid gold earring on a plated post will still react. Listings often specify the metal of the decorative part and not the post; if it is not stated, assume the post is plated base metal.

Also worth ruling out: sleeping in heavy earrings and not cleaning the posts both cause irritation that has nothing to do with the metal.

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