Why are some colors easier to remove than others with laser tattoo removal?

Different lasers have different wavelengths and targets. Black is a great target and works well. Blues/turqoise and green are less so.
However, if you have the 3 different types of lasers, removal of all the colors is possible. The other variable is how much ink has been placed in the tattoo, which can make it more challenging. Inks vary; there are no standards. And artists can ink deeper and more concentration.

Published on Jul 11, 2012

There really are a few factors involved. Ink must absorb laser energy to heat up super quickly, expand/break into tiny pieces--that's the pain felt--and cool off super fast. The larger the difference between the ink color and the skin color, the less competition for energy absorption. Different colors absorb energy differently from different wavelengths of laser energy. The most popular actual lasers for tattoo removal wavelengths going from deepest to shallowest penetration are 1064nm, 755, 694, 532. The depth where ink is placed in the skin is also a factor and if there is a cover up or multiple layers of ink or touch ups were put in. The most popular lasers often have a filter to convert/ simulate a different wavelenth than one of the above to remove ink. This conversion process reduces the power available for the ink to absorb. Some lasers use a fiber optic cable to deliver the energy which also reduces the power levels delivered to the ink. Those are two reason why we chose our Italian-made laser with 3 actual lasers with full power. Most lasers have an unever deliver of energy to the skin with hot spots and cold spots andca round shape beam. Ours has a square shaped beam, which the Italian company says "eliminates hot spots." The square shape comes in handy when we do selective removal of almost touching ink. THE most overlooked factor in removal is the broken up ink has to be removed by the body over TIME. Most peoplecsay 90 or 95% of thevremoval isdone by the body. So integrating herbs, vitamins and selective food choices and more significantly can increase the effectiveness of your bodys functioning. We believe the broken up ink particles get in the way of future laser treatments to a larger extent than recognized. Why keep using laser energy when broken up ink is still in the way. So waiting more time or enhancing your body's ability to remove the ink faster makes more sense. So we offer to teach the BLAST protocol to increase the body's ability.The more factors implemented, the more work the body does faster and the less laser treatments needed. We have some sucess removing ink colors using the "wrong" laser wavelengths. This is a strange statement to make until you understand that some wavelengths have lower risks for complications such as scarring, hypopigmentation, hyperpigmentation, etc. This is especially true on skin of color. We have seen some sucess in lightening ink without using any laser energy. This happened while we were preparing the body for a few weeks before beginning treatment. There are other factors not mentioned above that increase or decrease the removal of ink from the body. Using complenentary methods is safest and often less costly than more laser treatments. Our licensed pharmacist (nutritionally educated too) on our advisory board and the worlds greatest doctor ( he claims) were both consulted to be able to assist people with the best integrated methods. The more techniques able to help the better. And our pharmacist says the "side effects" are a better functioning body in general, not just for tattoo removal. This is not the complete story but gives you a good understanding. One more factor is important to answer the above question. Tattoo ink is not regulated by the FDA and may be made up of different color particles of ink like they mix ink when you choose a color of paint for your home. It looks like one color when mixed and your tattoo ink looks like one color but often its not. Different ink colors tend to have different particle sizes so they naturally leave your nody at different rates. That's why red ink tends to fade faster. So a laser wavelength most effective for the one color can remove ink when used on the "wrong" color ink. We theorize that the broken up ink causes heat shock proteins which activates the immune system so your body is very active in that area. That would explain how a laser effective for black can stimulate red ink to be removed. For darker skin tones its best to not use red ink because the skin melanocytes may be effected when/if trying to remove red ink with the laser most effective for red ink.

Published on Jul 11, 2012

Different tattoo colors absorb light in different ways. We will relate it to the way a t-shirt absorbs sunlight to illustrate our point. When walking outside on a sunny day with a black t-shirt, you will get very warm because dark colors absorb light very easily. You might get
somewhat warm with a red or green t-shirt and you would be the coolest in a white t-shirt because white reflects light easier than any color. The same goes for tattoo colors. The darker colors absorb laser light most easily. For this reason, blue, black and brown are typically the easiest color to remove. Orange, yellow, green and light blue are the
most difficult to remove because they do not absorb a light easily and they are also best suited for q-switched alexandrite lasers, which are not the most common type of tattoo removal laser.

Published on Jul 11, 2012