Dangerous fashion: the health risks behind tattoos for men and women

Nowadays, many young people like to get tattoos to show their personality and fashion, but if tattoos are not handled properly, they can cause harm to human skin cells and nerve cells and be detrimental to physical health. There is also a risk of contracting disease. So, what are the health risks of tattoos?

According to a survey of the beauty industry by the National Center for Toxicology Research in the United States,

The plethora of commercial and homemade tattoo inks contain solvents and metals—such as lead and mercury—as well as impurities that might be acceptable for computer prints or car paint but are totally unsuitable for injection into the human body.

At the same time, they identified low levels of carcinogens from tattoo inks. These substances, when the laser destroys the pigment by burning it, trigger chemical reactions that produce carcinogens and mutagenic degradation products that are then absorbed by the body. After laser treatment, concentrations of toxic molecules produced from red and yellow pigments increased 70-fold. The larger the tattoo, the more toxins are released.

In addition, since the tattoo process is similar to a sewing machine

The process is to repeatedly pierce the skin with a needle containing pigment. Each piercing will introduce a drop of pigment the size of a needle tip deep into the dermis. Therefore, if the instruments and pigments do not meet hygiene standards, this operation of puncturing the skin and contacting blood will cause various unknown diseases to the human body.

If unsterilized medical instruments are used, it may lead to infection with diseases such as AIDS, tetanus, hepatitis, etc. The main complications caused by tattoos are:

1. Infection:

Contaminated tattoo equipment and needles can spread infectious diseases such as hepatitis. The American Association of Blood Banks requires tattooed people to wait a full year before donating blood because of concerns about the risk of viral infection during the tattoo process. Various diseases such as tuberculosis, AIDS, hepatitis, and tetanus are blood-borne diseases that are easily transmitted through the use of medical instruments that are not properly sterilized. Among them, hepatitis C is more easily overlooked. Because it has no symptoms in the early stages, it can only be detected after it develops into cirrhosis. Hepatitis C is transmitted by a virus, and because its strains are prone to mutation, there is currently no vaccine.

2. Allergy:

Although allergic reactions to tattoo pigments are extremely rare, they can be very difficult to treat when they occur. Because once this pigment is implanted in the body, it is difficult to remove. Allergic symptoms caused by tattoos include itching and rash. Some tattoo recipients experience allergic reactions that last for years.

3. Skin infection:

There have been reports of skin cancers, including melanoma, occurring in tattooed areas, which has received considerable attention. In addition, the tattoo process can cause soft tissue injury and granuloma. Granuloma is a well-defined nodular lesion formed by localized infiltration and proliferation of macrophages and their evolved cells. It is divided into infectious granuloma and foreign body granuloma. Injecting anti-wrinkle drugs may also cause the formation of granulomas, so people who undergo cosmetic surgery should be aware that anti-wrinkle drugs are also a kind of "dangerous fashion."

4. Complications of MRI:

Because tattoo pigments interfere with the quality of MRI imaging, people with tattoos or women who have tattooed eyebrows and eyeliner will experience swelling or burns in the area where the pigment was implanted during MRI. Experts explain that this is due to the interaction between the metal components in the tattoo pigment and magnetic resonance. Therefore, before undergoing an MRI examination, patients should clearly inform their doctor of their condition so that appropriate preventive measures can be taken to prevent complications and determine the best treatment effect.