Some tattoo inks sold in Australia contain toxic metals and carcinogenic compounds at levels that would be illegal in the European Union, revealing a gap in regulations

Arvo r/science! Sharing this study that our Professor William Alex Donald is a corresponding author on.

The study analysed the chemical composition of 15 black and coloured tattoo inks from major, established international tattoo ink brands that were purchased from Australian suppliers. Every ink tested failed the current European Union safety regulations for tattoo inks, which have been enforced since 2022.

Australia has no binding national regulatory framework that aligns with the EU standards and instead relies on voluntary compliance and the occasional government characterisation study. Prof. Donald stated, “Because tattooing is now a mainstream form of body art, regular monitoring and aligning Australia’s standards with international best practice just makes sense.”

Important to note that the researchers say the study should not be interpreted as evidence that tattoos directly cause harm.

Here’s a link to the published paper: [https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304389425037951](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304389425037951)

Got no idea about tattooing, but isn’t the tattoo industry in a constant cycle of new paint introduced -> paint tested -> paint banned -> new paint introduced -> …?
Like it isn’t a question of “if” the materials will get tested as toxic, but “when”?