In this podcast we’re looking at how tattoos are made and what is inside the ink. This is an interesting podcast about all the things we don’t know about tattoos and how they could affect our body.

Students should listen to the podcast and answer the questions below. The answers are at the bottom and the podcast has a transcript which students can read while they listen to the podcast. It’s a fun way to train your listening reading and comprehension skills.

There are some difficult words which you can check before you start!

demographic	mummies	tattoo parlor
self-policing	label	ink
chronic reactions	pigments	impurities
dermatologist	overwhelming	dye

The answers are at the bottom

Click here for the transcript!

Questions for the podcast

1. What is the topic of the podcast today?
2. How many people have a tattoo in America?
3. How long have tattoos been around for?
4. What is the name of the tattoo studio the researcher visited?
5. How did the tattoo artists test their ink?
6. Who regulates the tattoo industry in the USA?
7. Scientists asked 300 people in Central Park if they had ever had an allergic reaction to a tattoo. What did those people say?
8. What color creates the most allergic reactions?
9. What chemicals are regulated in the European Union?
10. Where can the metal in the skin come from?
11. What happens to the lymph nodes of tattooed people?
12. Can researchers find any connection between diseases and tattoos?
13. Do people who get tattoos pay attention to the inks used?
14. Why are scientists studying tattoo and the ink used?

Extra Questions for Discussion

1. Have you got any tattoos?
2. Would you like to get a tattoo? Why?
3. Are tattoos popular in your country?
4. Why do you think a lot of people are getting tattoos nowadays?

Answers to the questions

1. The topic of today’s podcast is tattoos and what’s in the ink.
2. About one third of all Americans have them and about 40% of people between 18 to 34.
3. They have been around for thousands of years.
4. The tattoo studio is called Tattoo Paradise in D.C.
5. Tattoo artists test the ink on themselves.
6. The tattoo industry in the USA is self-regulated.
7. Those people said that they mostly hadn’t experienced any negative reactions, but some people said that they had had allergic reactions and itchy skin.
8. The red color.
9. Chemicals that are thought to cause cancer or damage DNA or cause allergies.
10. The metal can come from broken pieces of the needles in tattoo machines.
11. Their lymph nodes become dyed and change color.
12. Not yet. They don’t have enough organized data.
13. No, they do not. Usually, they do not ask any questions about the ink used.
14. They are just trying to understand which chemicals are safe and which chemicals aren’t.

Downloadable Questions and Answers

If you want more listening exercises, click here!