Experiment: Tattoos and Comfrey

If that isn’t descriptive enough, I don’t know what is.

Hypothesis 1: The healing qualities of the herb comfrey, especially preparations made from the root, will accelerate tattoo healing with minimal or no discomfort or scarring.

Defeat of Hypothesis 1 (Hypothesis 2): The tattoo will over-heal and push out more ink than typically occurs with black work tattoos; the vibrancy of the tattoo will be reduced without obvious ink loss because of subdermal breakdown; or the skin will scar or otherwise disfigure.

Null Hypothesis: The healing process will be exactly the same for both tattoos despite being treated with different preparations.

Premise: Comfrey is used to treat all sorts of lacerations, bruises, cuts, and so forth, and it is so effective in its action that any particles left in a wound are often trapped under the skin. Dermal invasions are usually dealt with through the body’s natural responses – scabbing, bleeding, lymph secretions – but comfrey often repairs the tissue so quickly that these phases are minimized or prevented altogether.

Research: There appears to be some opinions concerning comfrey and tattoos in online spaces, including at least two tattoo aftercare ointments that include comfrey in the ingredients, but none of these are suggested to have been tested or verified. Comfrey is also listed on a few sites as contraindicated for tattoo aftercare, but, again, there is no citation of testing or verification.

None of the preparations that included comfrey listed it as a primary ingredient, and some included a wide range of other herbs and substances known to have positive effects on skincare, including calendula and vitamin E oil. Thus, none are positioned to demonstrate comfrey’s effect by itself.

Procedure: I received two tattoos on March 12, 2026.

Tattoo 1: The arm band on my left forearm is the second part of a larger piece and will cared for in exactly the same manner as the first, using Harry’s Tattoo Frost, a lightweight hydration gel. The experimental part consists of the row of dots and the solid band towards the hand. Harry’s Tattoo Frost is a water-based gel whose main medicinal ingredient is aloe barbadensis juice.

Tattoo 2: The second tattoo is a small rectangle on the inside of my right wrist that includes fine lines, a solid black area, and a graduated area. This tattoo will be treated exclusively with TraumaPlant ointment. The preparation contains comfrey as the main ingredient. Rosemary extract is also one of the ingredients, presumably as an antiseptic, but everything else is inert carrier. This formulation was the closest to a pure comfrey ointment we could find in a commercially available brand.

Weaknesses of This Research:

• The sample size – me – is very small. Therefore, confounding factors such as age, dermal density, immune function, and other topical additives (soap, shower wash, etc.) cannot be recorded and accounted for across the sample.
• The tattoos are different designs/sizes. Ideally, there would be two identical tattoos on either arm, in the same position. Same limb placement risks overlap of treatment effects.
• Dosage is not being measured. This is a probably common problem with topical applications because a “light coat” of a lotion, balm, or ointment can be interpreted different ways. In this specific exercise, this problem is further compounded because the Tattoo Frost becomes completely transparent upon application while the TraumaPlant is slightly opaque until it settles into the skin; this can take several minutes, depending on the thickness of application. Visual effects are not reliable estimations of dosage.

Daily Log

Day One: March 14, 2026

Removed the Recovery Derm applied by the artist at the time of tattooing. Used warm water and hand soap, then pulled across the skin (instead of away), as instructed. Some dermal irritation was present from the removal (hair removal prior to tattooing was not complete in affected areas).

Washed and rinsed both tattoos with generic unscented hand soap gel to remove extra ink and skin. Patted dry.

Tattoo 1 began with a bit more irritation from the tattooing because of placement (going over softer skin) and showed localized inflammation, though minimal.

Tattoo 2 also showed minor irritation.

Discomfort levels between the two were comparable.

Each was treated with their respective remedies before bed.

Day 2: March 15, 2026

The morning after the Recovery Derm removal, each tattoo was gently washed in the shower with Harry’s shampoo/conditioner gel. (Harry’s bath gels tend to irritate my more tender skin and overly dry the rest of me.) The tattoos were patted dry and observed for presentation before applying remedies.

Tattoo 1, being larger and demanding more attention, set the timing for the application of remedies. Regardless of how Tattoo 2 felt or looked, it will receive treatment at the same time as Tattoo 1.

Application of remedy is occurring about everything three hours or so when Tattoo 1 feels dry or itchy.

Presentation: Tattoo 1 appears dry and smooth, typical of heavy black-packed work. The smooth area gives the impression of being a removable membrane.

Tattoo 2 also has a light membrane over the black-packed area, but not nearly as removed from the dermal layer as Tattoo 1.

Sensation: Tattoo 1 is mildly itchy (2.5 on a 10-point scale) but responds very well and immediately to the application of Tattoo Frost. It requires application every two to three hours for maximum comfort.

Tattoo 2 is less itchy than Tattoo 1 (maybe a 1) and less demanding. Application of a small pea-sized dose of TraumaPlant takes approximately ten to fifteen minutes to soak into the skin all the way and relieves discomfort immediately and completely on contact.

Day 1 Impression

The normal healing process of tattoos involves several phases, including light scabbing (less obvious with blackwork), peeling, and tenderness while the skin heals from thousands of tiny wounds.

The peeling phase is normally a gauge of progress, and the better the hydration of the tattoo, the longer it will take to reach this phase. However, on Day 1, Tattoo 2 is showing indications of entering the peeling phase very soon though it is well-hydrated, pliable to the touch, and lacking any irritation.

Day 3: March 16, 2026

Tattoo 1 is showing signs of starting a heavy peel and is itchy, as expected, and is dry and paper-like to the touch. Application of Tattoo Frost occurred every three to five hours.

Tattoo 2 is also showing signs of imminent peeling, but the skin is more pliable and less dry. Application of TraumaPlant occurred at the same rate as the Tattoo Frost to maintain consistency between remedies, but the discomfort is far less. Even the heavy black area has minimal or no itchiness at all. (What itchiness did occur was a direct result of wearing a long-sleeve sweater.)

Day 5: March 18, 2026

There isn’t very much difference from day to day in the appearance of the two tattoos, though they feel distinct from each other.

This morning, both tattoos showed signs of more aggressive peeling, so they got a gentle scrub in the shower, and most of the loose bits came away easily.

Tattoo 1 is very demanding for hydration and dries out very quickly.

Tattoo 2 does not itch at all and is very supple. It still shows evidence of some peeling typical for this phase of healing, but the extra skin is not separating in noticeable bits like Tattoo 1’s does and has barely any tattoo ink on it.

Day 8: March 21, 2026

After just over a week, I think I’ve reached the extent of the differences in response between the two tattoos. Both have been washed/scrubbed regularly, treated at the same time several times a day with their respective ointments, and kept out of direct sunlight for any significant period of time.

Tattoo 1 continues to be itchy and feels dry and stiff after several hours, but it is healing well. The last of the major peeling fell off yesterday, and the hair follicles are visibly showing regrowth. The color is still solid and presents typical for a tattoo at this stage.

Tattoo 2 hardly peeled at all, produced minimal epidermal sloughing (non-tattooed skin falling away from the edge of the tattoo), and has maintained a supple and moisturized presentation. There is zero discomfort and the color is roughly the same vibrancy as Tattoo 1.

At this point, I no longer feel the need to continue treating Tattoo 2 with comfrey and will default to my normal daily lotion routine. Tattoo 1 will more directly benefit from the same treatment (daily lotion routine) with visible changes in presentation, but that is the standard procedure a week after unwrapping anyway.

Tentative Conclusions and Recommendations

After eight days of regular treatment, I can confidently state that Tattoo 2 treated with comfrey ointment healed much more quickly than Tattoo 1, with less discomfort and with no pigment loss.

However, while there is a noticeable difference between Harry’s aloe-based hydrating gel and TraumaPlant’s comfrey-based ointment, I don’t perceive that the difference is significant enough to recommend not using either. I would venture that applying TraumaPlant to tattoos that are in sensitive areas or that have extensive layering would aid in healing the region very quickly without endangering the tattoo. Standard aloe-based and water-based gels and ointments should continue to be the standard of aftercare for tattoos.

Given the quality of most tattoo-specific preparations, applying comfrey ointment in between regular hydrating lotions and gels would be the best combination, as needed.

The addition of comfrey to other preparations may or may not be definitively useful depending on the concentration and strength, but this experiment has mainly demonstrated that the addition of comfrey won’t hurt the tattoo or impede the healing process.

Future Plans and Modifications

As I pointed out above, there are a number of weaknesses in this experiment. For future experiments, acquiring multiple preparations with and without comfrey and then applying to tattoos simultaneously as demonstrated in this experiment would be an excellent next step. Enrolling other people in similar experimentation would also help to determine the efficacy across different skin types and health profiles.

On the topic of health profiles, I do not drink alcohol nor do I smoke tobacco. I consume one cup of caffeinated coffee per day and rely on ibuprofen periodically for pain relief, and I used ibuprofen once during this experiment for weather-related discomfort. I occasionally partake of a bit of legal cannabis product (twice during this experiment), I have a gluten-free diet, and I am in generally good health. I do experience typical age-related conditions – menopause and elevated cholesterol (controlled with statins) – but do not have any indications of diabetes or other autoimmune disorders.

Also, shockingly, hella autistic. You’re welcome.