Is Tattooing safe while breastfeeding?
Here is what LactMed, the Drugs and Lactation Database published by the U.S. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), reports about Tattooing. The text below is quoted from that source — it is not our own verdict.
Summary of use during breastfeeding
No data are available on the safety of tattooing during breastfeeding. Theoretical concerns relate to transmission of pigments or infections to the infant during breastfeeding and in the United States, blood donation is not permitted for 12 months after a tattoo as a precaution. Opinion appears to favor not obtaining a new tattoo during breastfeeding.[1-3] Tattooing of the nipple-areola area is sometimes used as part of nipple reconstruction in plastic surgery.[2,4]
Effects on the breastfed infant
Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date.
Effects on milk supply
Relevant published information was not found as of the revision date.
“No published information” means the studies do not exist yet — not that Tattooing is known to be harmful, and not that it is known to be safe. Your prescriber or pharmacist can weigh your baby's age and whether a better-studied alternative would do the same job. Worth asking before stopping a medicine you need.
Source: Drugs and Lactation Database (LactMed), National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), via NCBI Bookshelf, record “Tattooing” (LM1001). LactMed on NCBI Bookshelf. LactMed is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Educational summary of an authoritative source — not medical advice. Never start, stop, or change a medicine while breastfeeding without confirming with your doctor.