Tattoo removal creams products, such as Wrecking Balm, Tat B Gone, Dermasal, and others, belong to a class of products that are what the FDA refers to as GRAS. In the language of the FDA approval, the Food and Drug Administration that seeks to protect consumers and verify the safety of ingredients in products sold over the counter directly to the consumer, the term GRAS stands for Generally Recognized as Safe.

What this means then is that the ingredients used in Wrecking Balm, as well Tat B Gone ingredients, Tattoo Off ingredients, and so on, are not specifically tested and reviewed by the FDA per product. Instead, the FDA recognized that the ingredients in these tattoo removal creams or balms are, you guessed it – generally recognized as safe.

What sort of guarantee does this then lend to the safety of tattoo removing creams and their ingredients?

For starters, it means they when the products are used as intended, they should do no harm. They shouldn’t cause any pain or make the person ill. However, notice we say as intended. This means if you eat the product or do something entirely foolish, their could be bad side effects to it! (Of course, you knew that already, right?)

When it comes to tattoo removal creams it means that the ingredients have been shown through research and qualified scientist expert opinion that the usage of such ingredients as intended is generally recognized as safe and OK for the health of the person using the product. This isn’t to say that it’s not impossible that someone could have an allergic reaction or bad reaction to something inside Wrecking Balm, for instance. But it means that the company is affirming that experts would agree that it’s generally safe to use for most people.

What does this mean for over the counter products such as TCA cream? Because TCA tattoo removal products are sold and used over the counter often without specifying their usage as a tattoo removing agent or fading agent, the manufacturers have little incentive to make any claims involving FDA approval or to make the claim surrounding TCA to be Generally Recognized as Safe.

Because of this, if you’re seeking a tattoo removal product that sits well with the FDA and is considers generally safe, then an over the counter tattoo cream – one that is sold and marketed directly for removing or fading tattoos – is your best bet.