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What’s Actually In Your Tattoo Ink? No One Really Knows

What’s Actually In Your Tattoo Ink? No One Really Knows

60-Second Science vor 2 Jahren

Chemists are hard at work figuring out how to make tattoos last—and ensure they’re safe.

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Nearly a third of U.S. adults have tattoos, but how many people
know what's really in the ink? Despite new regulations, researchers
have found many commercial inks contain unlisted and potentially
harmful ingredients. John Swierk, an assistant professor of
chemistry at Binghamton University, and his team are trying to
figure out exactly what goes into each vial of tattoo ink—and how
tattoos actually work—to help make body art safer. Email us at
sciencequickly@sciam.com if you have any questions, comments or
ideas for stories we should cover! Discover something new everyday:
subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for our daily
newsletter. Science Quickly is produced by Rachel Feltman,
Kelso Harper, Madison Goldberg and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was
hosted by Rachel Feltman, with guest John Swierk, assistant
professor of chemistry at Binghamton University. Our show is edited
by Elah Feder, Alexa Lim, Madison Goldberg and Anaissa Ruiz Tejada,
with fact-checking by Shayna Posses and Aaron Shattuck. The theme
music was composed by Dominic Smith. Learn more about your ad
choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices