Advertisement

If you have an ACS member number, please enter it here so we can link this account to your membership. (optional)

ACS values your privacy. By submitting your information, you are gaining access to C&EN and subscribing to our weekly newsletter. We use the information you provide to make your reading experience better, and we will never sell your data to third party members.

ENJOY UNLIMITED ACCES TO C&EN

Environment

Shocking Tattoos

January 14, 2008 | A version of this story appeared in Volume 86, Issue 2

Executive Compensation Information Available

Information from the American Chemical Society's 2006 Form 990 is now available to ACS members on www.acs.org. To access the information, please have your ACS membership number handy and follow these instructions: Go to www.acs.org. In the upper right-hand corner, log in. If you are already a registered user, enter your user name and password. If you're a new user, follow the link and register (a process that requires your ACS membership number and takes less than a minute). Once you have logged in, you will see a link titled "Member Information." Click on this link, go to the heading "Your Organization" at the bottom of the screen, and click on the link titled "Access the Compensation of ACS Officers and Key Employees." You will immediately go to the introductory text; the Form 990 is available by clicking on the link at the bottom of the page titled "2006 Compensation Schedules." If you have any problems, contact webmaster@acs.org.

I am a retired cosmetic chemist who spent decades working for major cosmetics manufacturers and many additional years in my own business, dealing with the stringent control of cosmetic colorants by FDA. I was shocked when I read the "What's That Stuff?" article on tattoo ink, which contained the following statement, "The Food & Drug Administration doesn't monitor the actual pigments used in tattooing" (C&EN, Nov. 12, 2007, page 52).

All organic colors for cosmetics must be certified, and inorganic cosmetic pigments have rigid purity requirements, but colors injected under the skin surface for tattooing can contain virtually anything. Theoretically, pigments containing lead are okay for tattoos. Unbelievable.

Martin J. Weisman
Westlake Village, Calif.

Article:

This article has been sent to the following recipient:

0 /1 FREE ARTICLES LEFT THIS MONTH Remaining
Chemistry matters. Join us to get the news you need.