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There are as many aftercare recommendations as there are tattoo artists. The Texas State Health Department law requires that I inform my clients of the need to apply antibiotic ointment or cream, but... A HEALTHY PERSON WITH A CLEAN WOUND SHOULD NOT NEED AN ANTIBIOTIC Antibiotics are used to treat bacterial infections. I'm not giving you an infected tattoo. So, if you don't have an infection, what are you treating? If you weren't diabetic, would you take insulin anyway? Antibiotics are equal opportunity killers. They don't distinguish between the good bacteria your body needs to fight off infectious bacteria and the infectious bacteria that you're fighting. When you destroy the good bacteria, your immune system is weakened. That's why you're seeing more ad's for yogurt and yogurt drinks now days. The acidophilus (big word for good bacteria) in yogurt boosts your immune system. Antibiotics are for the treatment of bacterial infections and do nothing about viral and fungal infections. In a 1996 study, it was found that "White petrolatum is a safe, effective wound care ointment...possesses an equally low infection rate and minimal risk for induction of allergy. Wounds treated with Bacitracin may result in allergic reactions or gram negative bacterial infections...support for the use of antibiotic containing ointments in the post procedure care of clean wounds is lacking. Antibiotic ointments are more expensive...and can risk the development of resistant bacteria and allergic contact dermatitis." Smack DP, Harrington AC, Dunn C, et al. "Infection and allergy incidence in ambulatory surgery patients using white petrolatum vs. bacitracin ointments: A randomized controlled trial." JAMA 1996; 276: 972-77. ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE AFFECTS EVERYONE "Antibiotics are critical to the treatment of bacterial infections. However, after years of overuse and misuse of these drugs, bacteria have developed antibiotic resistance, which has become a global health crisis." Stuart B. Levy, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Mass. CDC website, "Antibacterial Household Products: Cause for Concern." Since the 1950's, farmers have been feeding their livestock antibiotics. They started this because they wanted to build muscle in their animals. Bigger animals mean bigger money. More than 25 million pounds of antibiotics are fed to livestock each year.(1) Only about 2 million pounds of this are for sick animals.(1) It is estimated that more than 70% of antibiotics sold in this country are fed to livestock.(1) Currently, penicillin and tetracycline are commonly used in commercial feeds in the U.S.(1) This is what happens: antibiotics are fed to chickens every day. The Salmonella in the chickens becomes resistant to the antibiotics. Then we go to the store, buy the chicken, bring it home, handle or cook the chicken improperly, become sick with resistant bacteria and we have nothing to take that will cure us. "A report published in 2001 after scientists at the University of Maryland and the FDA sampled ground beef, turkey, chicken and pork from supermarkets in Washington D.C., revealed that a fifth of the samples contained Salmonella, and 84 percent of these organisms were resistant to at least one kind of antibiotic. Some were resistant to as many as 12"(2) ~ (1) Source: Information from Natural Health Magazine May/June 2002 Issue, page 75, "Sick Food" www.naturalhealthmag.com. ~ (2) Source: Information from May 2002 National Geographic Magazine, Page 9 "How Safe?" www.nationalgeographic.com The CDC now has a pamphlet titled "A new threat to your health: Antibiotic Resistance; Warning: Unnecessary Antibiotics CAN be harmful," which you can download from their website. "In June of
2000, The World Health Organization (WHO) warned that the level of
resistance to drugs used to treat common infectious diseases is reaching a
crisis point." WHO warns that if governments around the world don't
do something about this problem soon, entire populations may be wiped out
by "superbugs" that no antibiotic can touch. Tuberculosis,
Malaria, AIDS, Pneumonia and diarrhoeal diseases are all becoming
resistant to the drugs normally used to treat them. "All
these examples serve to indicate that resistance in pathogens causing
infectious disease is not limited to bacteria, but is also appearing in
parasites and viruses." This is due to doctors over prescribing
antibiotics and antimicrobials in our food production.
Source: American
Medical Association ~ "Antibiotics and Antimicrobials; WHO warns of
Impending Crisis due to Antimicrobial Resistance." ANTIMICROBIAL PRODUCTS MAY NOT BE HEALTHY " The recent entry of products containing antibacterial agents into healthy households has escalated from a few dozen products in the mid-1990's to more than 700 today. Antibacterial products were developed and have been successfully used to prevent transmission of disease-causing microorganisms among patients, particularly in hospitals. They are now being added to products used in healthy households, even though an added health benefit has not been demonstrated. Scientists are concerned that the antibacterial agents will select bacteria resistant to them and cross-resistant to antibiotics. Moreover, if they alter a person's microflora, they may negatively affect the normal maturation of the T helper cell response of the immune system to commensal flora antigens; this change could lead to a greater chance of allergies in children. As with antibiotics, prudent use of these products is urged. Their designated purpose is to protect vulnerable patients....The public is being bombarded with ads for cleansers, soaps, toothbrushes, dishwashing detergents, and hand lotions, all containing antibacterial agents. Likewise, we hear about "superbugs" and deadly viruses. Germs have become the buzzword for a danger people want to eliminate from their surroundings. In response to these messages, people are buying antibacterial products because they think these products offer health protection for them and their families. Among the newer products in the antibacterial craze are antibacterial window cleaner and antibacterial chop sticks. Antibacterial agents are now in plastic food storage containers in England. In Italy, antibacterial products are touted in public laundries. In the Boston area, you can purchase a mattress completely impregnated with antibacterial agent. Whole bathrooms and bedrooms can be outfitted with products containing triclosan (a common antibacterial agent), including pillows, sheets, towels, and slippers" CDC "Emerging Infectious Diseases; Antibacterial Household Products: Cause for Concern. Presentation from the 2000 Emerging Infectious Diseases Conference in Atlanta, Georgia." PETROLATUM IS TOO HEAVY Petrolatum ointments are synthetic, heavy compounds which "...[do] give a feeling of added moisture, but only because they provide a slick, oily base...these products clog pores and deprive skin cells of oxygen needed for normal...skin growth." Source: Page 60 of the February 2000 issue of Better Nutrition. Petrolatum: a colorless-to-amber gelatinous semisolid, obtained from petroleum. Source: The American Heritage Dictionary. Petroleum: a natural, yellow-to-black, thick, flammable liquid hydrocarbon mixture found principally beneath the earth's surface and processed for fractions including natural gas, gasoline, naphtha, kerosene, fuel and lubricating oils, paraffin wax, and asphalt. Source: The American Heritage Dictionary. A GOOD BROAD BASED ANTISEPTIC FROM NATURE Plants and bee products have been used since the dawn of time for healing. If you're healthy and take care of an open wound by keeping it clean and applying a good antiseptic, then your tattoo, rug burn, skinned knee, paper cut, scrape or scratch shouldn't become infected. Antiseptics assist your immune system in fighting off bacteria, virus and fungus. If you pick at your skinned knee or touch it without washing your hands, you're going to have problems. Duh!
There are many more plants that have antiseptic and/or healing properties and many of them have little to no side effects. And if you just don't care, use Aquaphor. It's easy to find and works. CONCLUSION Have a look at the tattoos in the gallery. While a few of the pictures are of fresh tattoos, a majority of them are of tattoos healed using Aquaphor or Tattoo Lube. |
© Copyright 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, Darin Clarke & Meowoem Productions. All rights reserved.
