Tattoo Inks May Leave Lasting Health Imprint

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Tattoo Inks May Leave Lasting Health Imprint
May 11, 2011
By Matthew Heller
Fair Warning

As tattoo body art continues to grow in popularity, health officials and other experts are warning that some tattoo inks are not safe, especially those that are mixed with chemicals in the more trendy designs.

The concerns over tattoo safety are something of a novelty for the Food and Drug Administration, which has the authority to regulate ink and ink colorings used in tattoos but has not exercised it much because of more pressing public health priorities. But according to NPR, the agency has started to see an increase in consumer complaints.

“We’ve seen such things as infections, swelling, cracking, peeling and blistering,” FDA chemist Petigara Harp said.

FDA scientists have been looking into what happens to ink when tattoos fade over time. One possibility, scientists say, is that the inks disperse through the body. Research already has found that certain types of pigment migrate from the tattoo site to the body’s lymph nodes, potentially damaging the lymphatic system.

Officials also are concerned that tattoo parlors are mixing inks with other, unsafe products. “There are some chemicals that have been shown to be injected along with the tattoo inks to make them brighter or even psychedelic,” said Dr. Tina Alster, a cosmetic dermatologist. “There are some that actually glow in black light.” She noted that fluorescent tattoos are a popular trend among club-goers but “nobody knows for sure what’s in” the inks.

According to some estimates, nearly half of all adults under the age of 40 sport at least one tattoo. A co-owner of Zulu Tattoo in Los Angeles told NPR that she is aware that some inks contain potentially harmful metals and plastics, so she uses only vegetable-based organic pigments. “It’s pretty much as safe as you can get,” Khani Zulu said.