Welcome to Dan Aid
Raising Awareness About The Dangers Of Body Piercing
Hi, I'm Christina, Dan's Mum and
I would like to warmly welcome
you to our website Dan Aid.

This website was built in Feb 2003
in memory of my wonderful son
Dan, and to highlight the health
risks and social implications
associated with body piercing.

After Daniel's death we found we needed to make sense of why our wonderful son, brother and friend had
been taken from us so young and so tragically. We wanted to find out more about the body piercing industry,
so that we could understand and make sense of what we felt was a completely unjust and unnecessary tragedy.

We were horrified and appalled to find out how little is in place in regards to the regulations of this popular
practice. In fact there is so little in place to protect the general public, that we felt compelled to speak out.
With no laws or recommendations in place this effectively means that anybody wishing to, can set a business
up with very little knowledge and indeed no qualifications.This for some, could quickly become very lucrative,
as body piercing is very appealing, fashionable and trendy, especially amongst children and teenagers.
This is something that we are extremely concerned about and are determined to challenge.

Currently in the UK there are no government recognised qualifications and only voluntary guidelines in place for
body piercers and we believe the government should be doing more to ensure the safety of our young people.

Since Dan's death we have campaigned tirelessly for a change in the law. This has never been easy and we
have often experienced many different and at times very challenging and difficult situations, which at times have
nearly broken us and we often considered giving up. We hope that with our campaign we can try and help to
prevent this from happening again. We would not wish another family to go through the heartache we have
endured and we are working hard to help make body piercing a more controlled, regulated and safer practice.

We know our campaign is already having an impact, and we have helped to implement through the support of our
local MP Meg Munn, some much needed changes. As campaigners we are optimistic, positive and hopeful that
more changes are favourable, this has given us the strength to keep fighting. We are determined and committed
in urging the government to prioritise, regulate and improve the Body Piercing Industry.

There is a tremendous amount of work that is put into making this a very successful campaign.
We are a strong, caring supportive family and we have some very special friends who really do make
all the difference and who are all working hard doing whatever they can, helping us to achieve our aim.

Through our campaign we are aware of how much we have helped and inspired others to stand up and
fight for what they believe in. We truly admire them all and take comfort ourselves, as we personally appreciate
this takes great courage, patience willpower, perseverance and determination. Campaigning is never easy.

Giving up for us is not an option!

Against all the odds my strong and very determined son Dan, clung onto life for a further eight weeks in
hospital after only being given 5% chance of recovery. Dan proved he was a fighter, it is only right that we
carry on his fight to help make body piercing a much safer practice, helping to save many more young lives.

Besides campaigning we also raise funds for the Take Heart Charity which is based in The Yorkshire Heart
Centre at Leeds General Infirmary. Throughout his life, Daniel spent a considerable amount of time in hospital
and always received the utmost care from the nursing staff in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit at the LGI.
We as a family, besides having the full support of all the nursing staff who really went out of their way to look
after us, also had full use of all the many facilities that Take Heart provide. This is our way of saying "Thank You".

We hope you find this website interesting, informative and inspiring. We feel it is important to share some
elements of Dan's life with you. We are constantly updating this website and keeping you informed of all
our many achievements. We are regularly adding new features. We welcome any comments you may have.
Please post your messages on our Forum and if you wish to, you can contact us through our Contacts page.

On behalf of all the Dan Aid Team I would like to thank you for visiting our website.

Stay Safe & Take Care
Kind Regards

Christina Anderson
Dan had a body piercing in
October 2002. When Dan was
pierced he developed septicaemia,
a severe form of blood poisoning
which destroys the body.

My precious son Dan died on
21st December 2002.
He was just 17 years old.
Our Story