The Torah rules in Leviticus 19:28 that permanent tattooing on the body violates Jewish law, “You shall not make gashes in your flesh for the dead, or incise any marks on yourselves: I am the Lord.” In addition, the Rambam (Maimonides) saw the origin of this prohibition as an act of idolatry, arguing that it was a pagan custom. Perhaps the great Jewish commentator on the Torah knew something that scientists in Sweden now suspect.
They have just published a study on the subject in the journal E-Clinical Medicine under the title, “Tattoos as a risk factor for : A population-based case-control study.” Lund University’s Christel Nielsen, Mats Jerkeman, and Anna Saxne Jöud wrote that the popularity of tattoos has increased dramatically over the last few decades. Tattoo ink often contains carcinogenic chemicals, including primary aromatic amines, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and metals.
Several European studies reported a prevalence above 20% of tattoos, and the US prevalence is estimated at 30%. “Most people get their first tattoo at a young age, which implies exposure to some chemical constituents of tattoo ink over almost the entire life course. Yet, research has only begun to scratch the surface of understanding the long-term health effects of tattoos,” Lund University’s researchers wrote in the essay.
“Our knowledge regarding the long-term health effects of tattoos has been poor, and there is not a lot of research within this area. “To our knowledge,.
