Many tattoo colors are toxic
A study of tattoo colors shows that the majority does not meet the legal requirements.
“Unfortunately, we found unauthorized amounts of toxic substances in several of the colors, and this can lead to severe eczema,” warns CBH fellow Yolanda Hedberg.
She has led an overall survey of the content and product declaration of ordinary tattoo colors, in a collaboration project between Region Stockholm and chemistry students from KTH. A total of 73 tattoo colors were collected from retailers, in-stores and online. Labels and content were examined to see if the legal requirements were met.
“We found that as many as 90 percent of the samples did not meet the requirements of the European Resolution ResAP 2008(1),” notes Yolanda Hedberg.
Read more about the project at kth.se: Toxic substances in tattoo color (in Swedish).