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A risky new trend, especially popular among members of Gen Z is “freeze branding.” Instead of getting a tattoo, or being branded using heat, people are permanently marking their skin with dry ice, isopropyl alcohol or liquid nitrogen.
As a result, the trend has doctors sounding an alarm with warnings about the dangers of “freeze branding.” Why? Because while it is usually done safely on cattle or horses, it can be potentially dangerous for humans.
What is freeze-branding?
According to Beef magazine, “Freeze branding is considered the method of choice by many registered and commercial producers alike. It has the ability to leave permanent, highly visible brands that can be read at much greater distances than ear tags or many hot-iron brands.”
The Team Roping Journal shares a whole list of do’s and don’ts, including how to do it safely and pros and cons of “freeze branding” a horse.
“With the application of an intensely cold branding iron, it is possible to destroy the color-producing pigment follicle and leave the growth follicle intact,” they write. “The hair that will then be produced will grow white, permanently, which contrasts really well on solid-colored horses: bays, blacks and sorrels.”
There’s just one problem
As Andrea Suarez, a board-certified dermatologist said in a TikTok video addressing the “freeze branding” trend, “You are not a horse.”
“Freeze branding human skin is a bad idea,” she continued, adding that it “can result in a full-thickness burn, that puts you at risk for a deep infection called cellulitis.”
Left untreated or not treated properly, cellulitis, according to the National Library of Medicine, can lead to a bacterial infection in a person’s bloodstream such as bacteremia, sepsis, or osteomyelitis.
@drdrayzday Freeze branding human skin is a bad idea, part 2. #freezebranding #cryobranding #tattoo #dermatologist @christininis❤👌🏻 ♬ original sound – Dr Dray | Dermatologist
Adam Taylor, professor of anatomy at Lancaster University, explains, “Cattle skin is much thicker than human skin and can take more punishment. Scratches that would cause pain and bleeding in humans would barely mark the surface of cattle. Horse and cattle skin is anywhere between two and four times thicker than human skin.
“When a person is freeze branded, the super cold causes ice crystals to form inside skin cells. As the water inside the cells freezes, it expands and breaks the cells’ walls. This kills the cells and stops them from making melanin, the pigment that gives your skin and hair color.
“Because of the relative thinness of human skin (2mm), it’s more likely to get badly burned from extreme cold. It can take as little as 20 seconds for liquid nitrogen to cause second, third and even fourth degree burns. These burns can lead to serious problems, such as infection, frostbite or even loss of fingers or limbs.”
Those aren’t the only risks
Taylor also points out that since “freeze branding” can lead to an increased risk of dehydration, and, since it destroys melanocytes – the skin’s protective shield – it puts one at a much higher risk of skin cancer. He also points out that while there “are strict safety protocols for branding animals,” there are “zero for humans.”
“Your skin is your largest organ with many important roles, including protecting your internal structures from germs and helping synthesize key vitamins,” he writes. “Don’t treat it like livestock.”