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People who ink may be in for more than just body art.. “I got tattooed during a time in my life when I wasn’t fully informed about what was going into my body or what I was allowing onto my skin. Back then, it was about art, self-expression, and creative identity.” “Today, I see it differently. Tattoos are not harmless,” Ellie Grey a book author, .. Like Grey, many people choose to get tattoos as self-expression, acts of remembrance, or transformation. But even when the meaning runs deep, tattoos can have consequences—some only now coming to light. The Link Between...

A new study has discovered that tattoo inks could be linked to cancer or organ failure. An analysis of 54 inks commonly used in tattoo parlors across America has uncovered that a staggering 45 of them contained unlisted additives, including chemicals known to pose alarming health risks. Multiple inks contained 2-phenoxyethanol, which can cause toxic effects in high doses. Researchers involved in the study found the most common additive to be polyethylene glycol, which is a compound that can cause acute renal failure. The study was led by Jonn Swierk from the Department of Chemistry at Binghamton University, and was...