A Sydney mother has shared horror images on social media of her child who received a henna tattoo while on holiday in Bali.
The concerned mom shared four images to popular Facebook group ‘Bali Bogans’ detailing how her child received the tattoo in Seminyak, before appearing to break out in a red, raised reaction at the site of the artwork seven days later.
“My kiddo got a henna tattoo at Seminyak beach and had this reaction,” she wrote alongside the images of her child’s arm.
“It happened about a week later once we got back home thank goodness. It may not happen to you but just wanted to share anyway.”
The woman said the reaction could simply be her son’s skin type, however he’d “never had a reaction like this before”.
“It’s spreading but no pain and just incredibly itchy,” she added.
Hundreds of followers commented on the images, where it is understood the young boy has been prescribed cream, antibiotics and now taking antihistamines.
“Myself and many people I know have had them with no reaction … my daughter, however, had a reaction when she was young,” one commented.
“She was prescribed cortisone when we got back to Australia … healed nicely but left a white marking of the tattoo for a month or so.
“Sadly I don’t think I have ever seen a positive post about henna tattoos in Bali,” another added.
“Reactions like this are common unfortunately.”
What are Henna tattoos?
Henna tattooing is a form of temporary body decoration similar in appearance to a tattoo, although the color of natural henna is usually somewhere between red, orange, brown or burgundy and the ink does not penetrate the skin.
In recent years henna tattoos have become very popular for tourists — especially in destinations like Southeast Asia.
These tattoos are fast, easy, painless and temporary and can last from 12 days to a couple of months.
According to the Western Australia Government’s Department of Health, the process of applying henna tattoos carries a possible risk of spreading infection and operators are encouraged to follow standard precautions.
While most operators use natural henna, some opt for ‘black henna’ which is different. Natural henna is a brown-orange pigment and does not cause chemical burns or allergic reactions. Black henna, however, is synthetic and contains paraphenylenediamine (PPD) and other unknown chemicals that can cause severe irritation and allergic reactions, often requiring medications to clear.
‘I’m an idiot … don’t risk it’
In 2022, a mother who felt like an “idiot” posted to the same ‘Bali Bogans’ Facebook page, whereby she revealed the horrific injuries her child had sustained from henna tattoos.
The mom said she hoped her child’s experience and imagery of their red and inflamed arm would deter others not to take the “risk” while on holiday in Bali.
The picture showed the lines of the henna tattoo, which was taken two weeks after the original application.
The unnamed mother said she’d previously seen a warning about henna reactions, but didn’t think anything of it while her son was getting one in Bali.
“Even as I was watching my son get it done, it totally slipped my mind,” she admitted.
“So just a refresh for anyone who may already know or not. Don’t risk it.”
In 2019, Catriona Rowntree shared her friend’s experience with a dodgy henna tattoo.
“When traveling to Bali, everyone tells you what to do and what not to do. Add this to your list of ‘do nots’ … do NOT get a henna tattoo, unless you can be 100 per cent sure it’s henna,” she said.
“My 10 year old son got what we thought was a ‘henna tattoo’ on our last day in Bali and it wasn’t until a week later, after we’d returned home, that it started turning red, itchy, raised and sore.”
“It wasn’t henna! We believe it was black hair dye mixed with … God knows what. It may have been mixed with petrol or kerosene, we’ve since learned.”
She said after a course of prednisolone and cortisone, it wasn’t itchy or red any more, but her son would probably have scars for years to come.
And it’s not just Bali where these horror cases of Henna infections are taking place.
A mom in the UK in 2023 shared pictures of how her seven-year-old daughter was left with “scars for life” by a henna tattoo she got on holiday in Turkey.
Kirsty Newton, 37, let her daughter Matilda get the temporary ink while on a family holiday at an all-inclusive hotel. Matilda chose a beautiful, 3cm-tall butterfly design, which the artist sketched onto her right forearm.
At first, Matilda was ecstatic about her new ink. But, when the family-of-four returned home to England, the butterfly print became red and itchy.
Newton took two trips to the chemist to get help, to no avail. When the raised burn began to crack and bleed, she rushed Matilda to the hospital.
Doctors confirmed Matilda was having an allergic reaction to paraphenylenediamine (PPD), a chemical commonly found in dark hair dyes. Unlike natural henna, which tends to be brown or mahogany in color, black henna is tinted with PPD.
Matilda was prescribed anti-allergy tablets, steroids and antibiotic creams, but her mom fears the medication will never fully heal Matilda’s scorched skin.
“The hospital said it was an allergic reaction to the black henna used and she won’t be able to use hair dye when she’s older. We weren’t informed it was black henna, the tattoo stand just advertised henna tattoos,” she said.
After the incident, Newton posted photos of Matilda’s butterfly burn to social media — like others before her, to warn parents about the dangers of black henna.
