Actually, it’s none of my business. However, I believe it’s a question to ask patients and one that perhaps should be noted on personal medical records. And that’s because scientists are just beginning to understand how tattoos affect the immune system. And here I thought the greatest risk was hepatitis from dirty needles.
Introducing tattoo ink into the skin triggers the immune system to respond. The white blood cells that travel the body removing the trash like bacteria and viruses can’t remove most tattoo ink particles because they are too large, and that’s why tattoos are permanent. Unfortunately, just because the ink particles can’t be removed, it doesn’t mean that the immune system simply forgets about them. While white blood cells can’t remove the ink, the ink itself can migrate through the lymphatic system and settle in the lymph nodes. The body’s system tasked with taking out the trash is itself being trashed. Not a good idea. Because the ink can’t be removed, the immune system is constantly on alert in what becomes a lifelong battle. And that sets the body up for other issues, particularly in those with already weakened immune systems.
Some of the tattoo ink pigments currently used were designed for car paint, printer toner, and plastics—not for injecting human skin. As a young mother, I never purchased or allowed my children to use crayons made in China. I saw too many reports of lead and other heavy metals in them. And yet, many of these tattoo inks contain traces of heavy metals which already have a reputation for damaging internal organs and increasing the risk of cancer. In addition, the heavy metals in these tattoo inks can not only trigger sensitivities and immune responses soon after they’re injected, but also up to decades later. Black inks often contain carcinogenic compounds. Red, orange, and yellow inks are implicated in allergic reactions and chronic inflammation. Red ink occasionally triggers persistent itching, swelling, and small inflammatory nodules called granulomas that form when the immune system isolates foreign material that it can’t remove.
Researchers note that cumulative exposure is a primary concern—the larger the tattooed surface, the greater the health impact. Sun exposure, laser removal, ageing, and changes in the immune system can all influence the impact a tattoo has on the body.
As noted, researchers are just beginning to study how tattoos affect the body’s immune system. There isn’t a lot of data to draw on, and there are certainly no treatments to mitigate the effects of tattoos that I’m aware of. As the number of tattooed people in this country continues to rise, I thought it was a topic to become familiar with.
References:
https://www.sciencealert.com/were-only-just-beginning-to-understand-how-tattoos-affect-the-immune-system
https://theconversation.com/tattoos-toxins-and-the-immune-system-what-you-need-to-know-before-you-get-inked-271503
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2510392122
https://www.dkfz.de/en/clinical-epidemiology-of-early-cancer-detection/tattoo-ink
