Getting a tattoo during pregnancy isn't safe, so it is obviously not OK to get inked while you are breastfeeding either. Or is it? Plenty of women would love to get a tattoo while they are nursing. If you are one of them, what do you need to know about its safety?
I personally got tattooed while breastfeeding several times! Getting a tattoo while pregnant are risky because the inks used can be slightly toxic, and this gets into the blood stream and possibly to the placenta. Besides that, the small risk that a tattoo can become infected is enough of a reason to delay getting the work done, because an infection can be dangerous for a baby in the womb too.
Breastfeeding is different. Waiting for a while makes sense while you have a tiny baby (you probably won't have time to get inked anyway), but if you're a breastfeeding mom who is in it for the long haul, there really isn't a reason to wait until the child is weaned. The La Leche League points out that the toxins in the ink (if they are there at all) are too large to pass into breast milk, and that all these products are FDA approved, if you are in the United States.
Of course, the same rules that apply to getting tattooed safely still apply, and should be looked into even more rigorously. Check that your studio has a license and is a member of a reputable professional association before getting a tattoo. Ask to see the artist removing the needles from the package, and check if everything is clean and sterile.
Likewise, make sure that you follow the after care instructions closely to prevent infection after you get the tattoo. And, don't get tattooed on your breasts because that would pose a danger of infection while you are nursing :).
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