Is talc in baby powder dangerous?

Johnson & Johnson has agreed to pay $700 million to settle claims related to the presence of carcinogenic talc in the company's baby powders. To date, more than 50,000 lawsuits have been filed against the pharmaceutical company.

J&J has sold baby powder for 130 years. It was used not only as baby powder, but also as a hygiene product.

In 2006, WHO reported that talc used in cosmetics may be carcinogenic and can lead to ovarian cancer when used as a hygiene powder. Talc supplier Luzenac America Inc. notified J&J and other customers about this, information about the carcinogenicity of talc began to spread among consumers. However, talc products were still available on the market.

In 2013, an overview analyzing studies of the relationship between the occurrence of ovarian cancer and the use of talc was published. According to research data, contact of talcum powder with the female genital organs increases the risk of the disease by 20-30%. According to the researchers, this dependence may be due to the fact that tiny particles penetrate inside and linger for years, causing chronic inflammation and then cancer. However, some studies refute this connection, so the harm of talc in powder has not been definitively proven.

It is also worth noting that there have been no reports of children being harmed by the powder.

However, due to widespread publicity and numerous lawsuits, J&J stopped supplying talc products in the United States and Canada in 2020. An alternative version of the cornstarch-based product is currently available in these countries.

In Russia, the first lawsuit against J&J was filed by the Public Consumer Initiative (OPI) in 2023. OPI demands a ban on the sale of this product in the Russian Federation and its withdrawal from circulation. In addition, OPI requests that Russian consumers have access to a compensation fund in the amount of $8.9 billion, which was created by the company to pay claims from victims in the United States and Canada.