Tattoos Increase Risks of Hepatitis, HIV, Cancer; Reveals Study

Tattoos and the ink and needles used for them increase the risk of diseases like Hepatitis, HIV, and even cancers of the liver and blood.

A recent study by researchers at Lund University in Sweden studied 11,905 individuals with tattoos and found that were at a higher risk of lymphoma. The risk of lymphoma was highest in individuals with less than two years since their first tattoo.

The risk associated with tattoo exposure was the highest for large B-cell lymphoma and follicular lymphoma.

It is because of the tattoo ink, which may contain polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), a carcinogen. When this carcinogen is injected into the skin, the body treats it as a foreign object and the immune system gets activated. A large part of the ink is deposited at the lymph nodes.

A study by Australia’s Department of Health also found a mismatch between the labelling and the contents of tattoo inks. It was found that there was presence of PAHs in 20 per cent of the tattoo ink samples. Other hazardous components like mercury, barium, copper, amines, and various colourants were also found in tattoo inks. These chemicals can dangerous skin cancers.

Deposition of these harmful chemicals in the lymphatic system of the body increases rinks of cancers of liver, urinary bladder as well as blood cancers like lymphoma and leukaemia.

Added to it, unhygienic tattoo making can also lead to infection Hepatitis and HIV infection.