You may have heard lately that tattoos can potentially raise your risk of skin cancer. Recent research might complicate that narrative, however, suggesting that tattoos aren’t as harmful to our skin as assumed.

Scientists at the University of Utah led the study, published last month in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Contrary to their expectations, they found that people who had multiple tattoos actually had a lower associated risk of melanoma. That said, the findings don’t provide conclusive proof that tattoos can prevent skin cancer, the researchers caution.

“Further investigation is warranted to clarify these relationships,” they wrote.

An unexpected finding

Several recent studies have indicated that tattoos could pose a unique cancer risk. Just this March, for insta

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