Then it's time for a few lines again. Last time I told my story about tattoo colors and I will continue to talk about tattoo colors this time as well.

I have just come home from WCTP (World Congress of Tattoo and Pigment Research). The conference itself is organized by ESTP (European Society of Tattoo and Pigment Research). It is a congress that, among other things, presents research on tattoo colors and complications around everything that touches tattoos and permanent makeup. . It is held every two years in some nice city in Europe. Copenhagen, Bruges, Regensburg, Bern, Amsterdam and now most recently in Vienna. All founded by Jörgen Serup at Bispebjerg Hospital. I have been there on all occasions except the first, in Copenhagen. In the beginning, I was very positive about ESTPs. Now over a decade later, I'm not as convinced.

 

Today, we have tattoo colors regulated in the tightest forest there is. More restrictions await around the corner and basically no one can cope with today's demands. As the icing on the cake, the other ingredients are also very strictly regulated.

 

What if all the problems with color we have today have their origin in when ESTP was founded that time in Denmark? What if Jörgen Serup at Bispebjerg Hospital had not started researching tattooing? What would it have looked like then?

 

Probably someone else had done it anyway. ECHA (European Chemical Agency) had already stigmatized tattoo inks. With thousands of studies and analyses, without a single connection between tattoo color and cancer, it is still said that hypothetically speaking, you could get cancer from getting a tattoo. I actually think that someone has gotten cancer from tattooing, but the risk is so terribly small that you are probably more at risk of getting cancer from clean drinking water and breathing air.

 

The first time I heard Jörgen Serup speak, he almost showed contempt for tattooing, as some kind of disease and something bad. ESTP brochures in the early years showed pictures of horrible infections and "ugly" tattoos. These days, it's beautiful tattoos and handshakes between tattooists and researchers that grace the covers. In addition to ESTP and WCTP, Jörgen is deeply involved in mandatory hygiene lectures for tattoo artists in Denmark, these have become a million dollar industry. Jörgen certainly admits that Reach was not a good regulation, but I can't help but think that if Jörgen had chosen to get involved in something other than just tattooing, would we be where we are today?

 

Our previously excellent regulation with content restrictions according to ResAp 2008 was so good. Most manufacturers could live up to the restrictions and we had no incidents at all during all these years. Today, we see cases of allergic reactions, poor healing and lack of documentation several times a week. The tattooists do not know how to follow the regulations and there is absolutely no one, whether authorities, municipal supervision or retailers, who has a completely clear picture of how everything is regulated. In addition, the vast majority of countries have different interpretations of REACH and other supplementary regulations concerning tattoo inks. It has thus become even more complicated and unreasonably difficult to comply with the requirements that are set today.

During the conference this year, I can state that basically no reach paint on the market meets the content requirements. The well-known laboratory CTL Bielfield gave a talk on the time from when our new regulations came into force until today. They have analyzed approximately 600 different reach colors and 97% of these were rejected as finished product, if I remember correctly. In other words, the colors we use today are probably not okay according to law. There are loopholes such as measurement methods that have a significantly greater tolerance than the lowest limit value. Endel has its products analyzed before sterilization in order to cope with increased levels of, for example, formaldehyde that occur during the sterilization process itself.

Other news for me is that if you sterilize something with bacteria, the bacteria die but the actual material of the bacteria remains and can cause complications. If there had been a greater demand for clean raw materials, we would have been able to avoid sterilization. We could have used isopropyl to avoid bacterial growth and avoided a lot of nonsense. We were also informed that we are only in the first phase of our regulation in reach and CLP. It will probably be tightened even more, and pigments such as Carbon Black and Titanium Oxide are already in focus. That is, all black and white tattoo colors. In addition, titanium oxide (white pigment) is used to make lighter blends today. We have gone from around 30 approved pigments (during ResAp 2008) to a handful approved today.

So what do I think will happen in the future for us?

I am fully convinced that we will do exactly as they did in Spain many years ago when a single company took a patent on a bottle that does not contaminate with air and make sure that it becomes law for Spanish tattoo artists. You put "approved" colors on the shelf and buy exactly what you want from afar and hide it under the table. The industry is going "underground" and the tattoos will shine again, but unfortunately we will lose all security for the customers. Alternatively, our customers will travel to a country where the "old" colors are approved for tattooing, for example Thailand or South America.

I don't want to be that sour old man who says that "it's gone to hell now" and "it was better before", but I actually don't have a better answer. Hundreds of thousands of signatures to the EU obviously do not help.

By the way, the last two talks at the congress were about tattooing animals. The summary of the animal experiments didn't give me anything that I understood at all. But four healthy pigs were tattooed on the inner thighs with blue (not an approved color) and euthanized 28 days later. They dissected the animals and took some pictures, and concluded that there were traces of pigment in the skin. Thirty nude mice were tattooed all over their backs with paint and then had to undergo an MRI to see if it hurts to get an MRI if you have a lot of tattoos. They concluded that you cannot get a good result with so few animals and a short time. It is hoped that it will be extended to more animals. Many participants left the lectures. I understand if you have to use animals in situations where it can save lives, but I don't understand this at all.

I feel quite empty after this year's congress, but will probably be there again in two years to monitor what is planned for the future. How will I do in the future? Will I start selling "artist supplies" that I can at least keep track of? Despite placing the responsibility in the customer's lap. In any case, it might be better than the tattooists looking for suspicious products from afar to be able to perform beautiful colorful tattoos.

Everything has a price, I think while humming Fleetwood Mac's "Go Your Own Way"

 

See ya!