Before we start, I know exactly what you’re thinking. Trust me, I’ve heard it for years. I understand where you’re coming from, parents and well-meaning others are always worried and concerned about things like getting a tattoo. However, in today’s society tattoos are becoming more and more common and more widely accepted. Tattoos used to be seen as this taboo thing, but times are changing. There have been studies that have found they are no longer seen this way or only seen this way by older generations. My generation and people slightly older than me, going into their 30s, are much more accepting towards tattoos. The New York Times even published an article explaining why the art of tattoos is no longer considered taboo. There are also many benefits to having a tattoo, stick around to find out why.

Previously, having ink meant risking not being accepted in the work force, in the larger society, and having a sort of stigma around you; not anymore. The New York Times published an article saying that tattoos in the workplace add more life to employees in the office in the now accepting environment. (source)

Cosmopolitan said, “According to a study presented Wednesday at the British Sociological Association,192 people with managerial experience were recruited to rate images of people both with and without tattoos. In the results, the managers believe tattooed employees could attract a young clientele, making businesses hip and relevant and cool daddy-o, as the kids say.” (source)

Although some say that tattoos can result in not gaining acceptance or possibly being tacky, these two website’s articles are only a couple of the examples that show how the taboo over tattoos is declining and going out of existence in multiple workplaces, which in turn means it’s going down in society as well. And as mentioned earlier, there are benefits to having tattoos, so here they are!

*A new study shows that getting a tattoo can increase your self-image for weeks (and in a lot of cases, even permanently)

*Accompanying somebody else when they get a tattoo has shown to be a bonding experience and create lifelong friendships.

*Getting a tattoo releases natural feel-good endorphins, which in turn makes you feel healthier and happier

*Some people have said that it makes you more assertive as it makes you more confident

*Having a tattoo can be a great conversation starter

*Many believe that getting a tattoo can make you more cultured and open-minded

*Tattoos are a form of self-expression

* And even though people may say that tattoos lead to infections and led poisoning this isn’t necessarily true. Most tattoo infections come from the person not properly taking care of their ink. In fact, there have been many studies done that show getting tattoos can actually boost your immune system, making you less susceptible to colds and various illnesses. Here’s what the American Journal of Human Biology has to say about it: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ajhb.22847/abstract;jsessionid=9B93759028D6CB996B171333E392617E.f01t02.

All in all, we can see that tattoos are perceived differently by the public eye than we originally thought. The stigma and taboo are dying out and the multitude of benefits have come to surface, proving that tattoos can be pretty great.