{"id":17548,"date":"2021-09-16T03:53:38","date_gmt":"2023-01-09T16:47:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saved-tattoo.com\/?p=17548"},"modified":"2024-02-12T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2024-02-12T00:00:00","slug":"what-not-to-eat-after-getting-a-tattoo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saved-tattoo.com\/what-not-to-eat-after-getting-a-tattoo\/","title":{"rendered":"What Not To Eat After Getting A Tattoo? \u2013 Diet Tips To Promote Faster Tattoo Healing"},"content":{"rendered":"

You are what you eat \u2013 this is a sentence that truly makes sense once you start paying attention to the way food affects your mind and body. However, even with this awareness, people generally tend to disregard the way food affects their tattoo and its healing process. Some don’t even think about the connection, which can probably be the reason why people experience prolonged tattoo healing, inflammations, and other side effects of improper nutrition.<\/p>\n

However, if you’re reading this, you’ve done the first step; this is a sign you want to be informed about proper nutrition during the tattoo aftercare. And, you’re also at the right place; in the following paragraphs, we’ll talk about how food affects your tattoo, and which foods and ingredients you should completely avoid until your tattoo is healed. So, without further ado, let’s dive right in!<\/p>\n

How Food Affects Your Tattoo: Everything You Need To Know<\/h2>\n

Alongside air and water, food is one of the most essential things we need for survival. However, certain foods can either help us, provide proper nutrition and keep us healthy, while other food groups tend to do the very opposite. Even when we are sick, some foods provide comfort and soothe the pain, while others prolong the agony and make us feel even worse. The same applies to the case of tattoo aftermath.<\/p>\n

It is important we finally understand that new, fresh tattoos act like open wounds (not as a wound as we would imagine, but still a wound), and that is how the body treats them. As such, the body transfers all the energy towards the ‘wounded area’ to help it heal as fast as possible<\/a>. The longer the healing process, the higher the chance of infection, and your body knows that.<\/p>\n

So, by eating certain foods, you can either help your body do the job quickly and efficiently or make this job even harder by not providing additional energy and nutrients. But, this is a pretty simplistic explanation; let’s see how exactly food affects your tattoo!<\/p>\n

1. Proper Nutrition Can Promote Faster Tattoo Healing<\/h3>\n

A new tattoo has a specific window in which it should stop oozing and bleeding, start drying and closing and eventually continue and complete its healing process<\/a>. This all happens in the crucial period of the first few weeks. The closing of the tattoo should happen in the first few days. So, time is of the essence here; if the tattoo stays open for too long, and the skin doesn’t start healing, there is a significant increase in the possibility of an infection.<\/p>\n

However, if you follow the aftercare properly, and you don’t turn out to be allergic to ink, everything should go smoothly. But, one important factor in all of this is proper nutrition.<\/p>\n

Food that is rich in vitamin A, vitamin C, zinc, and proteins can promote a faster healing process and prevent the occurrence of infections. These ingredients, alongside other vitamins, minerals, and amino acids, will boost your immune system and provide the body with all the energy and resources to fix the damaged skin and ensure the healing goes smoothly.<\/p>\n

2. Unhealthy Foods Can Prolong Tattoo Healing<\/h3>\n

As we mentioned, if you follow the proper tattoo aftercare and you eat proper, healthy foods, your tattoo will seal and heal in no time. However, an unhealthy diet can have the quite opposite effect; greasy, processed, high-in-sugar foods can prolong the healing process and even promote the development of inflammation and infection.<\/p>\n

Dairy and sugar, in particular, are known to prolong the recovery time and promote inflammation, so they should be especially avoided during the tattoo healing process.<\/p>\n

Now, the reason such foods prolong the tattoo healing time is the following;<\/p>\n

Because unhealthy foods are high in fat, the body requires a lot of energy to just process and digest the fat. That energy is then directed from the healing towards digesting, so the tattoo or the damaged skin doesn’t get full support during the process.<\/p>\n

3. Unhealthy Foods Can Promote Allergic Reactions<\/h3>\n

There are probably some foods or ingredients you’re allergic to; if not, then you can skip this paragraph. Now, for those who are allergic, or simply have a low tolerance to some foods<\/a>, it is essential to avoid eating something that might trigger an allergic reaction.<\/p>\n

In case you are lactose-intolerant, and you, for example, have a coffee with milk while your fresh tattoo is healing, you can expect a full-blown allergic reaction. We’re talking blisters, rash, hives, tattoo raising, skin swelling, etc. The inked area simply reacts to even the mildest of food allergies and intolerance, so you need to be extra careful with this.<\/p>\n

In case such an allergic reaction occurs, you can expect the tattoo to get messed up, in terms of the design and the ink. It can even take a longer time to heal, which could also lead to an infection. If this does happen, the best thing you can do is visit a doctor and ask for a professional opinion.<\/p>\n

So, Which Foods Should I Avoid After Getting a Tattoo?<\/h2>\n

Here are the foods you should completely avoid during the tattoo healing process. That is generally a period of 2 weeks to a month, sometimes even longer if your particular tattoo is naturally taking longer to heal.<\/p>\n