DesignGuide

5 Things about tattoos and pregnancy

Pregnancy and tattoo

Perhaps you believe that the best way to celebrate the special occasion in your life is with a tattoo. Tattoo can be used on various parts of the body. But some women prefer to use the stomach for a special reason. However, there are many concerns in your mind regarding the safety for both you and your baby. If you are planning for one on your stomach you need to remember a lot of things. Given below are some interesting facts about tattoo and pregnancy. Read on to be aware of the changes your tattoo design might show during and after pregnancy.

1. Weight gain and tattoos

Tattoos are affected with the increase or decrease in the body size. For minor changes, nothing may be noticeable. Think of a balloon with a design on it. As you inflate you can see the size of the design increasing without many changes. All you can make out is a slight difference in color when it is fully inflated. Your skin may not undergo such a change as the balloon and so the changes may not be very obvious. The skin is considered to be elastic which makes it very easy for contracts and stretches.

2. Getting a tattoo when pregnant

To be on the safer side, it is better not to get a tattoo when you are pregnant. This is vital for you and your baby. Most of the tattoo shops do not offer this service when you are pregnant. Whatever you take or do can affect your baby. So it is better not to take the risk at his moment. If you get a tattoo, it lowers your immunity and causes other health problems for both of you. If the healing does not take place properly, it can become infected and lead to various other complications. The baby may also get infected. Then there are the dangers associated with the dyes and chemicals used and the needles and other hygiene aspects. So wait for all the hassles to be over.

3. Stretching of tattoos

Some of you may already have tattoos on the stomach. Tattoos can be less forgiving when it comes to pregnancy. When compared to the weight gain in other parts of your body, pregnancy is rapid weight gain with a lot of stretching taking place on the skin within a short span. Your tattoo may not be able to bear such fast changes and result in some undesirable changes. Sometimes you may also need a C-section while giving birth which means more abuse to your tattoo. If you are planning for more kids in future it is better to wait so that your tattoo can be free from such abuses.

4. Stretch marks and tattoos

Another concern that every woman has is whether the stretch marks cause any damage to the tattoo. The answer unfortunately, is yes. So you have to reconsider the area where you may need to place your favorite tattoo. It is better to avoid areas that are prone to weight fluctuation like under arms, lower back, stomach, breasts and abdomen. If you have a damaged tattoo due to the stretch marks you can check it out with your tattoo artist and find out if it can be fixed or covered. The artist may examine the extent of the damage to find out what best he can do. He may use some tactics to incorporate some cool design or fix the damaged design.

5. Tattoos and breast feeding

When you are pregnant, everything that goes inside your body is going to affect your child. Experts advice that tattoos should not be taken at least till six months after your infant has been weaned. This means that your body should become normal and your baby is not depending on breast milk. After this period it is safe to take the tattoo.

While getting a tattoo done, remember to go to a registered artist. He should use gloves all through the procedure. Check whether he is using the sterilizing unit. The studio should be very neat and clean. The needles used should be disposables, new and single use types. The dressings and inks etc should be unopened and sterile. If you have problem, you should be able to contact the artist within 24 hours. When you take care of these things you can safely get a tattoo when you are free from all the hassles of pregnancy.

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