Are Ink Stamps Safe on Skin?
Great for craft projects, scrapbooking and simply for an art class, ink stamps are a staple in almost any younger children's grade-school art-supply drawer. Filled with an array of shapes or characters to choose to stamp with, the ink pads, too, come in a wide variety of colors and scents. With so much to choose from, you may wonder if it is safe is some of those stamps leave the paper and instead wind up directly on skin.
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Identification
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Especially used in grade schools and many art classes worldwide, nontoxic ink pads are great for just such an occasion. These ink pads are sold where ink pads and stamps are sold and are clearly labeled as nontoxic on the box. If you look for one of these specific brands, know they are perfectly safe to apply directly to the skin.
Warnings
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Regular ink pads that do not denote themselves as completely nontoxic hold the potential to lead to ink poisoning. While the amount of ink would have to quite substantial, and it normally would have to actually be ingested to pose a threat, it is possible they pose a hazard for young children. This is known as ink poisoning. Though it is more common from ingesting ink from pens, a child ingesting an ink pad runs the risk of ink poisoning.
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Considerations
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Even if you are using a nontoxic ink pad, you want to be sure you don't apply any ink to a place where the skin is broken, cut or exposed. This could lead to irritation of the skin and, perhaps, even an infection. Because abrasions or wounds in the skin should remain clean and sanitary, placing any kind of ink in that area is not advised.
Significance
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As issued the report from the Sanford Corp. Ink Pads Inks safety data sheet, the contents of their ink pads are: dye, water, glycerin, glycol ethers and diethylene glycol. Further, there is no listed health threat from the ink being applied to the skin, being inhaled or even ingested (though not advised), deeming the product nontoxic. The ink has shown no carcinogenicity and is not reactive in nature.
Potential
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There ink pads designed specifically for application to the skin. These include ones used as tattoos, with henna, and ones that illuminate under a blacklight, which are used to help parents and children get their hands stamped to avoid the risk of child abduction in public places. All of these ink pads are nontoxic in nature and used frequently.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Terry Johnston
