Kelly-Anne Mangum
Mrs. LoMonte
Pre-AICE English Language per. 2
Dec. 5th 2010
To Make a Point: Where, Why & How
Body piercings and tattoos have been around for many years. Piercings have traveled from country to country, from America to the Middle East, and almost anywhere in between. Tattoos started in Egypt with pharaohs and mummification, and have traveled to America since that time. There are many consequences that come with getting piercings or tattoos and one should be especially careful when getting them done. Let’s take a look at how tattoos are made and the safety issues, the risks, and where certain piercings come from.
Tattoos are made with tiny ink droplets from a hand-held machine that punctures the skin. “Tats” as they are normally called, can be “removed” but technically they are permanent because the removal process only slightly takes away the pigmentation of the tattoo, leaving a faded image. The process of getting a tattoo can take up to several hours depending on the size and if you want colors; and there is a possibility of pain. Now, how can you put your body in danger by getting a tattoo? Well for starters, you have one of your friends do them. Chances are, if you get any tattoos or piercings for that matter done by one of your friends, it could lead to infection. When getting a tattoo, make sure the artist is properly licensed and has the proper equipment. All equipment that is non-disposable should be sterilized with an autoclave after use, and that the artist had sterilized their hands as well.
Tattoos may be attractive [depending on the style] and the hip new thing today, but it is extremely easy to infect your body if you don’t take care of it. The main risks of tattoos are but not limited to allergic reactions, skin infections, and blood borne diseases. The actual color from tattoos comes from dyes which can cause allergic reactions to the skin; especially red dyes which could lead to rashes that may not even appear until years after you get the tattoo. Bacterial infections are a possibility along with keloids, which are raised areas cause by scar tissue or bumps called granulomas which form around the dyes, especially the red. Some of the most dangerous risks involved with getting a tattoo are those that involve the blood borne diseases. The needle doesn’t actually pierce through the skin and into nerves or our blood cells, but it does go through the epidermis, which is the outermost layer of the skin and very thin. If the needle is contacted with infected blood from your body [or anyone else’s for that matter], then you could contract hepatitis B or C which are two different types of liver inflammation or even Human Immunodeficiency Virus [HIV] which can lead to Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome [AIDS], a fatal disease.
From an observation of the people today in America, my opinion has been made that there are 3 main places that people like to have their piercings, from the most popular to the least: the ears, the nose, and the lip. Taking a look through history I have found that our first attempt at piercing any part of our body was the ears, mainly because it’s a simple job. Traditionally it was the women that would wear the earrings but men like Shakespeare would wear gold “rings” or hoops, in their ears during the Elizabethan Era. As for nose piercings, which were actually mentioned in the Bible as a Shanf, which is Hebrew for “golden earring” and that translates into nose ring. Nose rings aren’t exactly popular today as you will find more people with a little silver or gold ball on their nostrils instead of a ring dangling from them. The practices of the actual nose rings are still present in Africa and the Middle East, where the size of the ring can actually signify wealth. The trend traveled throughout the decades, from the hippie years into the punk rebellions of conservative values. As for lips and tongue piercings, those are another story. The lips are pierced throughout the world, but only in 2 tribes in Africa do they actually use a ring and the term is really “lip labret”. Through this method, plates are inserted into the lips, to stretch them out. The plated may be made of almost any material including, ivory, quartz crystals, and clay. The lips may actually be pierced together but it’s not a regular thing with the tribes. This “way of life” transitioned from Africa to the ancient Aztecs and Mayans which lead to this practice by some of the Pacific Northwest Native Americans, and all the way to North America and Canada.
In conclusion, body piercings and tattoos have been around for many years, inspiring new traditions, and trends for people to follow. Be mindful that these types of body modification can come with more than what we may have bargained for and that one should be especially careful with what we do to ourselves.
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