3 questions with focus on the safety of tattoo and permanent make-up and the attempt of answering them
1) How do we produce our tattoo colors?:
All the WEFAcolors tattoo colors are an own development and get produced and packed following our own recipes in our own production plant.
For our customers this means the highest possible security concerning the hygiene, application of the colors and the following healing. At the raw material selection we always pay attention to the best products available in the market.
The most raw materials used for the production of the WEFAcolors tattoo colors conform the degree of purity which is also used for cosmetic and pharmaceutical products.
2) Which requirements do we set on our raw materials and how is their quality structure:
The used water in the WEFAcolors tattoo colors is special rehashed water.
The pigments are chosen conforming to our own standards. The selection is conform to the cosmetics directive, Directive 76/768/EEC, appendix II and appendix IV, columns 2 to 4. and conformable to the EU-resolution ResAP (2008)1 from 2008. The contaminants of the pigments caused by the production where we have no influence, contain no measurable parts of cadmium, mercury, selenium, tellurium, thallium, uranium, chromate or solvable barium compound and originate in clean EU-production. The measured values of arsenic, antimony, lead, chromium and Zinc are conformal to the cosmetics limit values.
Regular controls by an independent surveyor laboratory give us the security for the application.
The excipients for the stabilization, processing and shelf-life are also conformal to the directives for the application of cosmetic products. Raw materials, which contain amines and their compounds listed in the ResAP (2008)1 and which have carcinogenic properties, are not used in our tattoo colors. The sterilization is made with gamma rays conform to AAMITIR33/ISO11137.
At our tattoo colors and utilities for tattooing we take care that we produce and bring out products which fulfill the requirements of the tattoo branch.
3) A word to the application and risks;
Every reliable producer should issue a statement, even if he acts against his own economic interests with this. The reliability of our company demands this exposition. Although we as producers are always bothered to limit nowadays known factors of risk referring to tattoo colors as far as possible, the products might still pose a health risk for the customer under certain circumstances. This fact is known by everybody from the application of cosmetic substances and pharmaceuticals. The German federal institute for risk assessment (BFR) pointed out possible risks for health due to tattoo colors and permanent make-up in a statement.
In contrast to cosmetic substances, tattoo colors and permanent make-up are not applied on the skin, but get brought into the skin. This means in any case an intentional insure of the skin and the resulting wound must heal. Since every skin type has a different consistency and reacts different, but can not be excluded that skin irritations may occur after the application of tattoo colors and permanent make-up, visible as light flush up to an allergic reaction. However these reactions don’t necessarily need to occur. Also the antiseptic additives used in the recipes like alcohols and other disinfecting agents and preservatives, which can indeed have positive effects, are no guarantee for the absence of adverse effects.
Thus, everybody who would like to have a tattoo, should first have a look in a known and reliable tattoo parlor and should use a consulting service. Also a small tattoo as a so to speak test tattoo and allergy test is definitely not a bad idea. In case of doubt you should in our opinion consult a dermatologic doctor’s office.