Already one in five adult Europeans has a tattoo. Apparently, its application to the skin changes a person’s life. In fact, such body decoration may turn out to be very significant and even disastrous for its owners. A team of scientists from the UK and Denmark noted that toxins from the inks used to tattoo the body build up in the body and can cause cancer.
The ink microparticles penetrate the bloodstream and thus spread throughout the body. They can accumulate, for example, in the spleen or kidneys, and this may lead to disturbances in the cleansing and detoxification of the body. It turns out that tattoo parlors do not use special, tested carcasses that are even allowed to come into contact with the human body, not to mention the permission to inject deep into the skin. There are no rules in this market, says the head of the research team on the subject, Desmond Tobin of Bradford University.
During testing, it was found that the red inks contain mercury, while the navy blue and green inks contain cobalt. These elements often cause cancer. Paradoxically, we refuse to eat sea fish that are contaminated with such metals to a much lesser extent than these carcasses, and the contact with the threat is quite short. In this case, the durability of the tattoo becomes a disadvantage, not an advantage. Dangerous substances take a long time to make themselves comfortable in the body. Body decoration lovers do not stop at one graphic symbol. They supplement their collections, which they never part with, with new drawings, portraits, and allegories. Each of them can siphon their portion of venom into the owner’s body.
Jorgen Serup, a Danish professor of dermatology, also conducted a similar study and found that 13 of the 21 most commonly used tattoo dyes in Europe are carcinogenic, i.e. potentially carcinogenic. The scientist emphasizes that rules should be introduced quickly, according to which tattoo parlors will inform clients about what they are applying to them, i.e. about the content of dangerous ingredients in dyes. Interestingly, ink manufacturers do not deny these conclusions, but claim that only about 5 percent. tattoo parlors actually use preparations containing carcinogenic substances. They ensure that they will conduct a special information campaign aimed at completely eliminating them from use. However, before that happens and the stocks of dyes in tattoo parlors run out, many people will succumb to this risky body embellishment.
In 2011, a similar study was conducted in the US after the US Food and Drug Administration concluded that the inks contained potentially hazardous substances, including metals and bicarbonates. One of them is benzopyrene, a substance usually found in black inks. For the ignorant – we hear about benzopyrene more often in the context of the harmfulness of tobacco smoke. This substance was long recognized as a carcinogen and its production and supply should be under the control of the designated authorities. Animal trials have shown that benzopyrene causes skin cancer! Scientists suggest that the same warning campaign should be carried out about tattoos as against smoking or excessive sunbathing.
text: Wisława Karolewska
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