INDEPTH: TATTOO
Body Art: The story behind tattooing and piercing in Canada
CBC News Online | August 30, 2004
$34 for a hole through the nostril. Navels and nipples, they cost $39. And if you are really experimental, you can get your genitals pierced for $73. Piercing isn't exactly mainstream, but in spite of the cost, it is growing in popularity. It's also causing concern for health authorities.
Health Canada has guidelines to deal with prevention and control of infection in the tattoo and body piercing industry. Cities must perform inspections annually or when they receive complaints. But otherwise, it’s a self-regulated business. There is no set of federal rules, regulations, or laws to govern the industry.
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Piercing prices at one shop in Toronto
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Navel
Nipple
Both nipples
Tongue
Eyebrow
Lip
Nostril
Septum
Earlobe
Both earlobes
Genital
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$39
$39
$73
$52
$34
$39
$34
$30
$26
$50
$73
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Denise Robinson, former editor of the body art magazine Needle Exchange is now a health educator at the City of Ottawa's Health Department. She told CBC News Online that tattoo parlours and piercing studios are largely regulated the same way restaurants are regulated – with health and safety standards. Inspectors investigate facilities for infractions and studios that don’t meet standards are shut down.
While there is no law that says that you must be over the age of majority to use a piercing or tattoo service, many parlours insist that those under the age of 18 provide written permission from a parent or guardian. However, many of these letters are forged and some children go to parlours that do not require parental consent. Robinson says many of these facilities are in people's homes and are not subject to any inspections or standards.
What is tattooing?
Health Canada defines tattooing as the art of permanently depositing pigment into the skin to a depth of 1-2 mm to create a design. An electric machine vibrates a cluster of needles hundreds of times per minute to puncture the skin and deposit the pigment. The art dates bate to 2000 B.C. as a tribal custom in many different parts of the world, including Africa and North America.
What is ear/body piercing?
Ear/body piercing is the insertion of metal jewelry into skin tissue using an ear piercing gun or long needles. The most frequently pierced sites, according to Health Canada include, ears, nose, navel, lip, tongue, nipples and genitals.
What are the risks involved?
Carla McPhie of Ajax, Ontario, thought that getting her tongue pierced would be fun, until it caused a brain infection 10 months later. She began getting throbbing headaches, eventually fell into seizure and was rushed to hospital where she had a large piece of her skull removed to treat a brain abscess.
The staircase leading up to one of the tattoo/piercing shops in Toronto
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While this is an extreme case, the rate of infection in Canada from tattoos and piercings is relatively high. It is caused by the breaking of the skin, which usually protects the body from being infected by bacteria. This may happen through the use of a contaminated needle or by bacteria entering the body through the break in the skin.
More infections have been reported after tattooing than after piercing. Piercing and tattooing have transmitted diseases such as Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, HIV/AIDS, warts, herpes, toxic shock syndrome, skin tuberculosis, inoculation leprosy, and bacterial skin infections.
Other problems include allergies to tattoo pigments, reactions to metals in body jewelry and scar tissue formation. Malignant melanoma, a type of cancer, has also been linked to tattooing.
How do you avoid the risks?
Consumers should always look out for clean, well-sterilized facilities and an artist that they trust. Health Canada guidelines state that body piercers and tattoo artists must use pre-packaged, pre-sterilized disposable needles and sterile equipment. An ear-piercing gun should never be used to pierce any body part other than the ear. Customer should also tell the artist about any allergies before the procedure begins.
How many people have tattoos or piercings?
Since body piercing is a fairly new phenomenon, Canadian statistics on the procedure are few. However, there’s some evidence that it’s growing in popularity.
Health Canada reported that between 73 per cent and 83 per cent of U.S. women had their ears pierced and between 34 and 52 per cent had complications arising from their piercings. Between 1960 and 1980, the number of U.S. women who were tattooed quadrupled, totalling between 50,000 and 100,000 tattoos annually.
In Canada, 47 per cent of males and 53 per cent of females in prison had tattoos. Edmonton, Alberta alone has 16 tattoo shops, employing 23 tattoo artists and nine body piercers.
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