Tattoos – Your health is at risk

Summary

The detrimental side effects of tattoos are known but often ignored. Many simply assume that tattooing is safe due to its popularity. Others just don’t do their research before they’re injected with dies, plastics, and paints. Many feel that since tattoo parlors are regulated then the ink should be, but that is not true. The potential for infection with life changing infections is also present. The biggest health risk is due to heavy metal poisoning due to tattoo ink. There are things that everyone should know before getting a tattoo. I will endeavor to inform you of the main risks.

risks
The risks associated with tattoos can be described as skin-related diseases, target organ diseases (liver, kidney, brain), and heavy metal poisoning. There are ways to avoid these effects of tattoos and I will share them with you. But first, let’s look at some stats.

According to Statistical Brain (2016),
• Americans spend a whopping 1.655 billion dollars annually on tattoos.
• Americans who have at least one tattoo number 45 million people.
• The percentage of people who regret getting a tattoo is 17%.
• The percentage of Americans who remove a tattoo is 11%.

Why do people get tattoos?

These stats are staggering numbers to me. It’s amazing that so many people want to risk their health for skin art. People are motivated to get tattoos for a variety of reasons ranging from wearing art on their skin, remembering a loved one, or looking sexy or dangerous. Motivation is not important for today’s topic, but I just wanted to give you a little background.

The Dangers of Tattoo Ink Carriers

What are the dangers of tattoo ink carriers? Carriers are used to keep the ink, plastic or paint evenly distributed during application and inhibit the growth of pathogens (bacteria/viruses). Please note that these ingredients are not regulated for use in tattoos by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) in most states.
• Ethyl alcohol: Isopropyl alcohol is for external use and should not be injected into the skin. It can cause dry skin, irritation and can negatively affect the nerves.
• Glycerin: This is the sugar alcohol glycerol and can cause increased urination and diarrhea.
• Listerine: is a mixture based on menthol alcohol, methyl salicylate, thymol (from thyme oil) and eucalyptol (liquid derived from eucalyptus oil). May cause skin irritation and localized allergic reactions.
• Propylene Glycol: It is the main ingredient in antifreeze that can damage the liver and kidneys.

The dangers of tattoo ink

Those were just the carriers. What is in each color of ink? Many of these inks have ingredients that you shouldn’t even apply to your skin, let alone inject into the bottom layer of your skin. The epidermis is the outer layer of the skin that is made up of dead skin cells and acts as a bandage for the entire body. It protects us from bacteria and viruses. The dermis is the living skin below the epidermis. The things injected into the dermis can be carried by the bloodstream to all parts of the body. That’s why we get infections when we get a cut or scrape on our skin. The protective epidermis is damaged.

What’s in the ink? Most inks contain acrylic resin (plastic molecules), but they also contain other ingredients. They are listed below by color based on Helmenstine (2017) and my own research.

• Black ink – Iron oxide (rust), carbon or carbon – this is probably the least dangerous ink. The amount of iron oxide must be inadequate to cause iron toxicity. Ask the tattoo artist to use purified water as a vehicle.
• Blue ink: copper, carbonite (azurite), sodium aluminum silicate (lapus lazuli), calcium copper silicate (Egyptian blue), cobalt and aluminum oxides and chrome oxides. Copper can lead to or contribute to heavy metal poisoning. Aluminum has been shown to be attributed to Alzheimer’s disease and gastrointestinal disorders.
• Brown ink – Iron oxide and ocher iron clay – this is probably as safe as black ink and for the same reasons.
• Green ink: Chromium and malachite oxide, lead chromate and the synthetic compound Cu phthalocyanine are used and only the first two are considered moderately safe. Lead chromate is derived from lead, which is toxic even in low doses. Copper Phthalocyanine is an unregulated copper compound and can cause skin irritation and respiratory irritation.
• Orange ink: Disazodiarylide and/or disazopyrazolone and cadmium sulfate produce orange ink. The first two are considered safe, but cadmium sulfate is considered toxic and possibly carcinogenic.
• Purple: manganese violet, quinacridone, and dioxazine; the first of these is considered safe. Quinacridone is an FDA-approved food dye, but it has caused localized skin reactions.
• Red: Cinnabar, cadmium red, iron oxide, and the pigment naphthol-AS are the various components of red ink. It is considered by most to be the most toxic color of tattoo ink. Cinnabar is derived from mercuric sulfate and is devastating to the nervous system. Cadmium red is a known carcinogen. Naphthol-AS pigment is used in red paints.
• Yellow: cadmium sulfate, ochre, turmeric yellow, chrome yellow, and some are safe and some are not. Cadmium sulfate is derived from lead and is toxic. The yellow derived from the spice turmeric or yellow turmeric is considered safe. The problem with yellow is the volume that must be used to provide a vibrant yellow color, so local skin irritation often results.
• White: titanium dioxide, lead white, barium sulfate, and zinc oxide (what you smear up your nose at the beach). Titanium dioxide has caused cancer in laboratory animals. White lead is considered a cancer-causing agent in humans. Barium is derived from the metal barium and is used in barium swallows for gastrointestinal testing, but when injected it can cause skin irritation.
• Glow-in-the-dark ink: Composed of compounds that are toxic and, in some cases, radioactive. Again, this is not regulated in most states.

Some of these compounds may be considered safe, but testing is still needed. Some of these compounds are toxic and can cause heavy metal poisoning as copper, lead, cadmium, chromium, arsenic, and aluminum leach into the bloodstream. Aluminum inks can also hasten the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.

Some of these inks cause cancer and have known mutagenic properties (causing mutations and birth defects) according to Genser (2007). The FDA should regulate these inks, but most states don’t. However, most states have started to regulate tattoo parlors and at least that’s a start.

Regulation of tattoo parlors has greatly decreased the rate of serious infections. The use of disposable needles has had a great impact. In the past, in unregulated tattoo parlors, the risk of contracting hepatitis B and C, HIV, tetanus, herpes, staph and syphilis was a real threat. Regulatory and disposable single-use needles have eliminated this risk (as long as regulations are followed).

Another major concern with tattoo art is the fact that life-saving MRIs cannot be performed in certain cases. This is because the metals in the ink cause an intense burning pain to the patient. This has led many radiology departments to refuse to perform MRIs on patients with tattoos, according to Grenser (2007). This could cause a resulting misdiagnosis or inability to diagnose.

There are safe tattoo inks that are willing to disclose their tattoo formulations. There are many more that are dangerous tattoo inks that are not regulated. Many manufacturers refuse to disclose the formula as proprietary information. The carriers used to evenly distribute the ink can also be potentially unsafe. Both the inks and the supports are not regulated by the FDA and the regulation of tattoo art is the responsibility of each individual state.

conclusion

Get tattooed at your own risk. Tattoos can be safe or dangerous depending on your preparation for the tattoo. Talk to the tattoo artist. Ask them what transportation solution they use. Ask them the composition of their ink. Choose your colors for the colors that are less toxic. Make sure the tattoo artist’s shop has an active certificate from the Department of Health. Ask them for their sanitation score from the Department of Health. If you think you should get a tattoo, do your research and make an informed decision. I personally recommend that you don’t get a tattoo. There are too many risks of minor irritations and persistent side effects like cancer, scarring, granulomas, infections, toxicity, and infections, according to Mishra (2013). I don’t think it’s worth the risk, but it’s your body. Just study and make an informed decision.