Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder is a popular brand of talcum powder that has been in the market for over 100 years. It is also one of the most widely used products in the United States, with annual sales of over $1 billion.
Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder is safe to use. The company has been around for over 100 years and has never had a product recall.
Since 1971, when British researchers discovered ovarian cancers with talc particles lodged in them, the safety of talc in products like Johnson’s Baby Powder has been questioned. Since then, there have been a slew of baby powder cancer lawsuits.
According to the National Center for Health Research, dozens of research studies involving thousands of women who used talcum powder have shown that those who do so are “about 30% more likely to be diagnosed with ovarian cancer than those who have not.”
Is Talc Harmful?
Asbestos and talc are both naturally occurring minerals. Talc may get contaminated with asbestos during the mining process since they are often found close to one another.
According to Cancer.gov, asbestos refers to a group of six minerals. Because asbestos is long-lasting and heat resistant, it has long been utilized in construction materials. Its large strands make it resilient, but they may cause problems if breathed. Asbestos is a well-known human carcinogen related to lung cancer and mesothelioma.
Talc in talcum powder is composed comprised of magnesium, silica, and oxygen, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS). Asbestos, as well as talc-containing asbestos, has been declared to be a human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a branch of the World Health Organization (WHO).
Talc has also been related to ovarian cancer, according to Cancer.gov. Asbestos may be present in some talc, which has caused some worry. Asbestos may enter the body if breathed during usage or when administered to the genital area, according to some specialists.
Because of this danger of contamination, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) started requiring talc to be tested for asbestos contamination in 1973.
What Does Talc Use Research Reveal?
According to studies by Daniel W. Cramer and colleagues, the usage of talcum powder on the vaginal region has been related to ovarian cancer. Talc particles were discovered in human ovarian and uterine cancers in 1971. The first case-control research demonstrating a connection between genital talc use and ovarian cancer was conducted in 1982. According to a 2016 research published in the medical journal Epidemiology, women who used talcum powder on their vaginal regions on a daily basis had a 33 percent higher risk of ovarian cancer.
Is Asbestos in Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder?
The FDA stated in October that it had discovered tiny levels of asbestos in tests taken from a single container of Johnson’s Baby Powder. In response, Johnson & Johnson recalled a single batch of baby powder.
Consumers have filed lawsuits alleging that they were duped into thinking talc was safe and that they used it for years. Plaintiffs acquired ovarian cancer after using Johnson & Johnson baby powder in their vaginal area on a daily basis, according to several claims. They claim they would not have used Johnson & Johnson baby powder as often if they had realized it was related to cancer.
A California jury ruled in favor of a former fifth-grade teacher who claimed that asbestos exposure in Johnson & Johnson talcum powder caused her mesothelioma. According to Bloomberg, Johnson & Johnson and Colgate must pay the lady almost $10 million in damages.
The government is looking at Johnson & Johnson’s talc safety concerns.
Concerns over talc powder and the health risks it poses have sparked not just consumer lawsuits but also government inquiry. According to Bloomberg, the Department of Justice has launched a formal investigation into Johnson & Johnson to see whether the company knew about the cancer risk and deliberately concealed or minimized it.
A Washington grand jury started examining records in 2019 to investigate if the firm had internal awareness of the issues.
Johnson & Johnson is also being probed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the quality of its goods, particularly baby powder. The company’s baby powder includes talc, which has prompted worries that it may contain asbestos, a potential carcinogen.
According to Business Insider, the inquiry was started after Reuters revealed that Johnson & Johnson may have known their talc contained asbestos and withheld the facts from the public, including the potential that the tainted talc was hazardous.
Is Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder Really Safe?
Despite being under investigation, Johnson & Johnson insists that the talc used in their products does not contain asbestos, according to Business Insider. Some customers claim that internal papers show Johnson & Johnson was aware of asbestos in talc and the potential risks it posed, but neglected to warn the public.
Because of the company’s history and pervasive marketing efforts, Johnson & Johnson has become synonymous with wholesome goodness and dependability. J&J marketing campaigns often mention the business’s 125-year heritage and promise customers that the firm “has supplied safe, mild, and gentle products for infants and adults” throughout its history, according to the company’s website.
J&J Products No Longer Contain Talc
Johnson & Johnson stated in May 2020 that it will stop selling talc-based baby powder in some countries. Despite the company’s claims that its talc-based baby powder is safe and free of asbestos, the product will be phased out in North America.
In North America, the company’s cornstarch-based baby powder will be accessible, and both types of baby powder will be offered in other countries around the globe. Johnson & Johnson will not remove current baby powder bottles off shop shelves and will instead enable merchants to sell their existing supply. New stock of the product, however, will not be available for sale in the United States or Canada.
The decision to withdraw the product was taken, according to Johnson & Johnson, owing to changes in consumer behavior that resulted in a drop in sales, as well as a campaign of disinformation about the product’s safety.
According to Medscape, Johnson & Johnson stated in a statement that “decades of rigorous research by medical professionals across the globe support the safety of our product.”
“Demand for talc-based Johnson’s Baby Powder has been decreasing in North America, owing in part to changes in consumer habits and fuelled by misconceptions about the product’s safety and a continuous onslaught of lawsuit advertising.”
Despite the company’s continued assurances that the product is safe, the removal of talc-based baby powder from shop shelves may seem like a victory for some sufferers. The New York Times interviewed an ovarian cancer survivor who began using baby powder at the age of ten about the product’s withdrawal off the market. “It means no more young girls will have to go through what we did. This is no longer the case. That monstrosity has vanished from the shelves.”
Lawsuits involving Johnson & Johnson baby powder
According to Reuters, lawsuits against pharmaceutical and consumer goods major Johnson & Johnson have built up in recent years, and the firm has won, settled, and lost cases, with the latter resulting in $172 million in verdicts against the corporation.
Many women use talc-based baby powder as a personal hygiene or cosmetic product, and now claimed victims say that after using Johnson & Johnson baby powder for years or decades, they were diagnosed with ovarian cancer or mesothelioma.
Johnson & Johnson said in a 2021 SEC filing that it has put aside $4 billion for baby powder litigation and settlement costs.
However, the business is still being sued for cancer caused by baby powder. Some juries have sided with Johnson & Johnson, finding that the plaintiffs’ cancer was unrelated to the use of baby powder, while others have not.
Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder has been accused of causing the death of a baby. The company claims that their product is safe and they have provided evidence to support this claim. Reference: johnson and johnson covid vaccine.
Related Tags
- johnson and johnson side effects
- johnson and johnson vaccine
- johnson and johnson products
- is johnson and johnson vaccine mrna
- johnson and johnson vaccine type