{"id":1765,"date":"2016-06-17T02:46:09","date_gmt":"2016-06-17T02:46:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/zestmag.com\/online\/?p=1765"},"modified":"2016-06-17T03:02:22","modified_gmt":"2016-06-17T03:02:22","slug":"black-henna-tattoos-may-be-bad-for-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/zestmag.com\/online\/black-henna-tattoos-may-be-bad-for-you\/","title":{"rendered":"Black henna tattoos may be bad for you"},"content":{"rendered":"

Whatever the season, it’s almost always summer vacation season (that is, we always want to be near the sun, sand and surf) – and so time to pack your swim suit, hit the beach, and perhaps indulge in a little harmless fun. What about getting a temporary tattoo to mark the occasion? Who could it hurt? It could hurt you.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"henna\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Unlike permanent tattoos which are injected into the skin, temporary tattoos marketed as “henna” are applied to the skin’s surface and usually last two to four weeks.\u00a0Henna is a reddish-brown coloring made from a flowering plant that grows in regions of Africa<\/span> and Asia<\/span>. For centuries, people have used henna to dye skin, hair, and fingernails. Henna body art \u2013 sometimes also called mehndi \u2013 is still used around the world to decorate the skin in cultural festivals and celebrations.<\/p>\n

However, just because a henna tattoo is temporary that doesn’t mean it is risk free. Today, so-called “black henna” is often used in place of traditional henna and is potentially harmful. Inks marketed as “black henna” \u2013 or sometimes simply as “henna” \u2013 may actually be hair dye or a mix of henna with other ingredients. The extra ingredient used to darken henna is often a coal-tar hair dye containing p-phenylenediamine (PPD), which can cause dangerous reactions in some people. By law, PPD is not permitted in cosmetics intended for staining the skin. Henna is permitted as a hair coloring.<\/p>\n

You may see “black henna” used in places such as temporary tattoo kiosks at beaches, boardwalks, and other holiday destinations, as well as some ethnic or specialty shops. While states have jurisdiction over professional practices such as tattooing and cosmetology, that oversight differs from state to state. So, depending on where you are, it’s possible no one is checking to make sure that the artist is following safe practices.<\/p>\n

A number of consumers have learned the risks the hard way. Reactions may occur immediately after the application of “black henna” temporary tattoos or even up to two or three weeks later. Reported problems include redness, blisters, raised red weeping lesions, loss of pigmentation, increased sensitivity to sunlight, and even permanent scarring. Some reactions have led to medical treatment, including emergency room visits and ongoing skin sensitivity that can affect day to day activities.<\/p>\n

Some people may experience cross-sensitization, meaning that because of a previous exposure and a bad reaction to that chemical, they become sensitized (allergic) to related compounds, such as\u00a0rubber and other latex products, certain medications, hair dye ingredients, and textile dyes.<\/p>\n

If you have a reaction to or concern about a temporary tattoo or any other cosmetic, contact your health care professional.<\/p>\n

For more information, read FDA<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Whatever the season, it’s almost always summer vacation season – and so time to pack your swim suit, hit the beach, and perhaps indulge in a little harmless fun. What about getting a temporary tattoo to mark the occasion? Who could it hurt? It could hurt you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1773,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,3],"tags":[997,993,996,994,995],"class_list":["post-1765","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-beauty-and-fashion","category-spotlight","tag-body-art","tag-henna","tag-mehndi","tag-tattoo","tag-temporary-tattoo"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/zestmag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1765","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/zestmag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/zestmag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zestmag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zestmag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1765"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/zestmag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1765\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1774,"href":"http:\/\/zestmag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1765\/revisions\/1774"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zestmag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1773"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/zestmag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1765"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zestmag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1765"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/zestmag.com\/online\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1765"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}