Tattoo artist shares true extent of how deep the ink actually goes into your skin
Tattoos have become very popular over recent years, but many don't actually know much about the process of tattooing.
It's well-known that there are risks when getting a new inking, and many are aware of tattoos fading or blowing out.
However, do you know how deep the ink actually penetrates the skin? One tattoo artist has shared a clip demonstrating the reality of the ink entering the skin.
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In a video shared to Facebook, the artist showed how the needle enters the skin by using a sausage instead of human skin.
"The needle deposits 1.5-2 millimetres of ink in skin," the voice over explained. "The needle goes through five layers of skin, directly into the dermis."
This may seem quite deep, but it's only around one sixteenth of an inch, which is quite tiny.
The needle pierces through five layers of the epidermis, as for a tattoo to be both permanent and look good, the needle must go through the dermis.
With tattoos being so popular now, there's been plenty of studies completed in a bid to learn about the potential health impacts of tattoo ink, especially in regard to it entering the body.
A study published from Sweden's Lund University warned that tattoos may have a long-term health impact for some people, finding that 'the risk of developing lymphoma was 21 percent higher among those who were tattooed'.
Researchers did say it was a rather rare disease and there might be other factors at play, but they did find that the body recognises tattoo ink as something foreign and will try to take it from the skin to the lymph nodes as your immune system kicks in.
Other studies have been looking into the impact various tattoos have on a person's body and it would appear as though there's one colour of ink which is likely to do more harm than the others.
A study from the Duke University School of Medicine found numerous cases of tumours developing within tattoos, and identified 'red tattoo pigment' as the kind most likely for tumours to develop with.
The study found that 36.9 percent of tumours appeared in tattoos that had a red pigment, so you might want to avoid that colour if you want to play it as safe as possible when getting a design etched into your skin.
Some countries, including the UK, have introduced bans on certain types of tattoo ink over concerns that they are carcinogenic. As part of the ban, tattoo ink manufacturers were told they would have time to find alternative formulas.
Danni King