Tattoos can be a great way to express yourself. There are many reasons for delving into the world of tattoos; remembering a happy time, to stand out and be yourself, to commemorate something, or just add something you think looks good to your body! The art of tattooing ones skin has been around for thousands of years, “the earliest known examples were for a long time Egyptian and were present on several female mummies dated to c. 2000 B.C.”(Smithsonianmag.com) As children I’m willing to bet all of us wrote on ourselves at one point with a big fat magic marker or Sharpie. Both markers and tattoos use ink, but why does the tattoo stay forever? The answer is in your skin.
Seeing as your skin is constantly regenerating and shedding, why does the tattoo remain? The epidermis is the outermost layer of the skin, which is subjected to this shedding. But tattoos are done to the dermis, or the innermost layer of the skin. The dermis does not replace itself nearly as often as the epidermis, seeing as it is sheltered. If the dermis were to be harmed, by a cut or puncture of some kind, it would most likely leave a scar or other permanent damage. This is similar to why a tattoo remains visible in the dermis; it is a permanent scar only with ink applied to it. Seeing as the cells do not replenish themselves nearly as often, the tattoo remains underneath the epidermis.
The actual act of the tattoo is the puncturing or scarring of the dermis. Tattooing needles pulsate at about 50-150 times every second, repeatedly stabbing the skin. The ink is then deposited into the skin in drops in the desired area.
One way the tattoo can be lost or distorted is not taking care of it directly after receiving it. If placed in warm water, the ink will leak through the layers of the skin and out of the body. So be careful how you treat your tattoo soon after receiving it, or the body will do its best to dispose of it! The pen below is really a tattoo
I was actually thinking about getting a tattoo this summer! I went with a couple of my friends to go get theirs and one of them actually had their skin reject the ink! “According to the Mayo Health Clinic, ink rejection can be the direct source of an allergic reaction to ingredients in various inks, contained within each pigment, even if the substance or the ink is not deemed harmful.”
I also didn’t know that a tattooing needle pulsates the skin at about 50-150 times every second so I found a slow motion video to show it. Its actually very interesting to see whats really happening and how the ink is entering your skin.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11I4gQFtkK8
Lastly, if you’re ever planning on conducting a study on people you could always use their tattoos as a confounding/third variable:
For example-
-Adults with tattoos have been shown to be more sexually active than controls without tattoos.
-People with tattoos have been shown to be more likely to engage in more higher risk behaviors.
-Might have tattoos because of their lifestyle (culture/geography)
I find that very interesting at how tattoos actually stay. It’s also crazy that the tattoo at the bottom isn’t a pen, it’s a tattoo (my jaw dropped). Something interesting that could fit in with this topic is the substance of the ink. Is it ok for the body? It it bad for you? I think adding the answers to that question could be an interesting addition to the post.