Why Tattoos is Bad For All Skin

In today's culture, body art and piercings are a popular form of self-expression. Tattoos in particular are a common way of displaying your individuality. Because they are permanent, however, a lot of consideration should go into the decision to get a tattoo. The first question you may have is whether or not a tattoo will have a harmful effect on your skin. The process does involve, of course, needles and ink.

The tattoo itself, once healed, is not bad for your skin. Issues arise, in fact, when complications occur during the healing process. A tattoo is essentially a series of punctures that insert dye into different levels of the skin, so it is by nature an invasive process. When done correctly and in a sterile environment, complications are uncommon, and the only immediate discomforts may be bleeding or pain.

It's important to keep potential complications in mind, however. One potential risk is a bacterial infection at the tattoo site. Symptoms of this include redness, warmth and a pus-like drainage. You may also have a reaction to the tattoo, in which bumps called granulomas or excessive scarring may appear. Some people may have a serious allergic reaction to the types of dyes used in tattoos, so it's important to leave the tattoo parlor with a list of the types of dyes used, just in case of emergency.

A more serious risk is the spread of infectious disease, which can be avoided by being particular about the tattoo parlor you use. Diseases such as hepatitis B, hepatitis C, tuberculosis, tetanus or HIV can spread if an artist uses dirty equipment. To be safe, make sure that the parlor uses an autoclave, or a heat sterilization machine, on all non-disposable equipment before you get your tattoo. Needles and tubes should be removed from sterile packaging before every tattoo job.

Be sure to follow all instructions from your tattoo artist in order to ensure proper healing. If you keep these potential risks in mind and carefully select your tattoo parlor, a tattoo can be a safe form of body art. See the links on the next page for more information.

As spring break season gets underway, the US Food and Drug Administration has issued a warning against a dangerous practice that many college kids engage in while on vacation. No, not binge drinking or using tanning oil instead of sunscreen: getting a temporary tattoo.

These typically last from three days to several weeks and use a dye like henna to tint the skin without piercing beneath the skin’s surface -- as with a permanent tattoo.

“Just because a tattoo is temporary it doesn’t mean that it is risk free,” said Dr. Linda Katz, director of the FDA’s Office of Cosmetics and Colors. Some consumers report reactions that may be severe and long outlast the temporary tattoos themselves as the photo below illustrates.

The FDA said it has received reports of problems associated with the tattoos such as redness, blisters, raised red weeping lesions, loss of pigmentation, increased sensitivity to sunlight, and, in rare cases, permanent scarring.

Inks marketed as black henna may be a mix of the red plant-based dye henna along with other ingredients, or may be hair dye alone. The reason for adding other ingredients is to create a tattoo that is darker and longer lasting, but use of black henna is potentially harmful, according to the FDA. That’s because the black hair dye often contains p-phenylenediamine (PPD), an ingredient that can cause dangerous skin reactions in some people.

While PPD has been banned in skin cosmetics, it’s still cropping up in temporary tattoos applied at local beaches and foreign resorts. Massachusetts has a number of temporary tattoo artists, who advertise their services online for weddings and other special events, and it’s best to ask them if they use black hair dye in their products; some airbrush them on with skin paints.

The state Department of Public Health regulates tattoo parlors that provide permanent tattoos, but doesn’t have authority over artists or kiosks offering temporary ones.