Questions and Answers
Can Skin Reject Tattoo Ink?
Source: Mar 31, 2011 | By Ryn Gargulinski
Photo Credit Tattoo man image by MAXFX from Fotolia.com
The beauty of tattoos outweighs the risks for many, as evidenced by the wide range of people with permanent body art. A smart move is to investigate your potential tattoo artist and studio to ensure precautions are in place to protect you from infection, blood-borne pathogens and disease. There is one risk from tattoos, however, over which you may not have much control. In rare cases, skin can reject the tattoo ink.
Rejection
The body rejects things by creating an allergic reaction to a substance it registers as harmful, even if the substance is not, says Mayo Clinic. Such is the case when skin rejects tattoo ink, usually with an itchy, red rash in the tattooed area. An allergic reaction to tattoo ink is rare, but it can hit even years after you get a tattoo. Sometimes, medications work for treatment, but in other cases, the best bet is to get the tattoo removed. Skin can also react soon after a tattoo by breaking out in itchy, raised bumps known as granulomas or form keloids, which are large, raised areas of scar tissue.
Cause
Allergic reactions to tattoos come about because of some of the substances used in ink pigments, Mayo Clinic and Dermatology Insights say. Some inks contain cadmium, mercury or other substances and compounds that some people's bodies deem as harmful. Red ink is one of the top culprits for allergic reactions, although neither Mayo Clinic nor Dermatology Insights note any specific components in red ink that differ from other colors and cause the higher rate of rejection.
Approved Pigments
Tattoo inks come in a huge palette of colors, ranging from Bahama blue to banana cream yellow, ruby red to titanium silver. More than 50 different pigments and shades are on the market, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration says, with new ones added regularly. The FDA has approved exactly zero for injection into the skin. This does not mean, however, all unapproved pigments will cause an adverse reaction. It means the FDA has been falling down on the job, which it readily admits on its website.
Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act
The FDA does approve color additives used in cosmetics, according to its website, and tattoo inks and pigments fall under its regulation under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. Even though some tattoo ink pigments are industrial-grade colors of the type found in car paint and printer ink, the FDA says it has instead been focusing on other, more pressing health concerns and, in the past, has not had evidence of any safety concerns with tattoo ink.
Investigation
The FDA plans to investigate tattoo inks in the wake of more than 150 reports of negative reactions to several different colors used for permanent makeup, says an FDA webpage last updated in December 2009. It mentions only permanent makeup complaints and not those from other types of tattoos. As it gathers more information during its investigation, the FDA will decide if it needs to take any action to protect consumers better, although it did not note what that action might be.
Photo Credit Tattoo man image by MAXFX from Fotolia.com
The beauty of tattoos outweighs the risks for many, as evidenced by the wide range of people with permanent body art. A smart move is to investigate your potential tattoo artist and studio to ensure precautions are in place to protect you from infection, blood-borne pathogens and disease. There is one risk from tattoos, however, over which you may not have much control. In rare cases, skin can reject the tattoo ink.
Rejection
The body rejects things by creating an allergic reaction to a substance it registers as harmful, even if the substance is not, says Mayo Clinic. Such is the case when skin rejects tattoo ink, usually with an itchy, red rash in the tattooed area. An allergic reaction to tattoo ink is rare, but it can hit even years after you get a tattoo. Sometimes, medications work for treatment, but in other cases, the best bet is to get the tattoo removed. Skin can also react soon after a tattoo by breaking out in itchy, raised bumps known as granulomas or form keloids, which are large, raised areas of scar tissue.
Cause
Allergic reactions to tattoos come about because of some of the substances used in ink pigments, Mayo Clinic and Dermatology Insights say. Some inks contain cadmium, mercury or other substances and compounds that some people's bodies deem as harmful. Red ink is one of the top culprits for allergic reactions, although neither Mayo Clinic nor Dermatology Insights note any specific components in red ink that differ from other colors and cause the higher rate of rejection.
Approved Pigments
Tattoo inks come in a huge palette of colors, ranging from Bahama blue to banana cream yellow, ruby red to titanium silver. More than 50 different pigments and shades are on the market, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration says, with new ones added regularly. The FDA has approved exactly zero for injection into the skin. This does not mean, however, all unapproved pigments will cause an adverse reaction. It means the FDA has been falling down on the job, which it readily admits on its website.
Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act
The FDA does approve color additives used in cosmetics, according to its website, and tattoo inks and pigments fall under its regulation under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. Even though some tattoo ink pigments are industrial-grade colors of the type found in car paint and printer ink, the FDA says it has instead been focusing on other, more pressing health concerns and, in the past, has not had evidence of any safety concerns with tattoo ink.
Investigation
The FDA plans to investigate tattoo inks in the wake of more than 150 reports of negative reactions to several different colors used for permanent makeup, says an FDA webpage last updated in December 2009. It mentions only permanent makeup complaints and not those from other types of tattoos. As it gathers more information during its investigation, the FDA will decide if it needs to take any action to protect consumers better, although it did not note what that action might be.