A mum has warned parents to beware after her daughter was left "scarred for life" by a horrific reaction to a henna tattoo.

Marlana Ellis, 32, was on a family holiday to Antalya in Turkey when three-year-old Freja was given the black inking of a cat.

But shortly after arriving home to Herne Bay, Freja complained the tattoo - which stretched from her wrist to her elbow - was itchy.

Scroll down to hear from Freja's mum

It erupted in a series of painful blisters, which became infected.

"My little girl has been scarred for life after getting what I thought was a harmless black henna tattoo," Marlana said.

"She has been covered in blisters and in so much pain. It's been heartbreaking.

"We were entirely unaware of the dangers and want to make sure other parents know what can happen so this doesn't affect other children."

Nurse Marlana says Freja had been begging for a henna tattoo after seeing other children at the hotel with them.

"She'd been so well-behaved that on the day before we left I decided to treat her," she said.

"We went to a nearby barber shop as it was doing henna tattoos.

"It seemed really clean and tidy and the man who did the tattoo even wiped Freja's arm with an antiseptic wipe beforehand so I wasn't too worried.

"She was totally made up with it and it wasn't until we got home that we realised there was something wrong.

"She said 'Mummy, my arm, it's warm and it's itching me. It hurts'.

"I had a look, but there was nothing visible, and decided I'd give it until the next day to see if she improved."

But an inflamed blister, filled with liquid, had started to develop on her arm the following morning.

Single mum-of-one Marlana took her daughter to the minor injuries unit at the town's Queen Victoria Memorial Hospital, where the doctor diagnosed a chemical burn.

"Straight away the doctor identified it as a black henna," she said. "I didn't realise it was different to any other type.

"He explained it contains chemicals that aren't meant to be used and told me that it'd burned her skin."

A chemical called para-phenylenediamine, or PPD, is added to henna to make the tattoos darker and increase their lifespan.

While PPD is present in many products, such as sun cream and hair dye, it tends to be used in very small doses.

Its addition to henna tattoos is now recognised as a public health issue, as it can cause allergic reactions in children.

A week later, Freja was prescribed a course of antibiotics after her GP discovered the wound had become infected.

Now, Marlana wants to warn others of the dangers black henna tattoos can pose.

"I just don't want any other families to go through what we have," she said.

"Freja's going to be scarred for life - she'll forever have a cat on her arm."