Children's and adolescents' awareness of the physical and mental health risks associated with tattooing: a focus group study.

This article explores children's and adolescents' awareness of the physical and mental health risks associated with the increasing practice of tattooing. Twelve focus group discussions on attitudes toward tattoos and beliefs about normative behavior, health beliefs, awareness of the long-term consequences of tattooing, and stigmatization were conducted with 80 volunteers, six to 17 years of age. The videotaped discussions revealed that participants' were knowledgeable about tattoos and the process, and were aware that viral transmission and physical disfigurement were possible results. Generally, attitudes toward tattoos were negative, with almost all participants associating them with illicit type activities. However, a more favorable attitude toward small tattoos was discernible among females during early adolescence. Participants suggested that because of the location of tattoos, they might be embarrassing in some instances, and that because of their permanency, young people might regret having them later in life. Some participants revealed they had removed tattoos using crude implements. These data suggest an urgent need for research on prevention of unsafe use of tattooing and piercing implements.