Tattoo taboo: Medical update

(U.S. Navy Photo, 1944)

The Book of Leviticus contains warnings against many popular practices.  Just as kosher laws may guard against bodily harm, so may this command from Verse 28:  Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print or tattoo any marks upon you: I am the Lord.

Researchers from the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) have found traces of tattoo particles within human lymph nodes.  Because tattoo ink can harbor “preservatives

and contaminants such as nickel, chromium, manganese and cobalt,” such traces might be toxic.

Lymph nodes have actually been known to “become tinted with the color of the tattoo.."  Because they assist with purification, this indicates an attempt “of the body to clean the site of the entrance of the  tattoo.”  Due to the smaller-than-micro size of the ink nanoparticles, we don’t yet really know whether the body can effectively deal with them.

    

Resources

http://www.healthbanks.com/PatientPortal/MyPractice.aspx?UAID={3832435F-CB0D-493C-AEB1-E9AF6161A975}&TabID={X}&ArticleID=726464 

Copyright September 15, 2017 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved