The company faces about 40,000 lawsuits from consumers around the world claiming its talc products caused cancer due to contamination with asbestos.
Johnson & Johnson will stop selling talc based baby powder globally in 2023. (Creative Commons)
Johnson & Johnson (J&J) will stop selling talc-based baby powder globally in 2023, said the drug maker. People will not be able to purchase the popular baby product which is a household name.
Doctors told South First that this would definitely impact those who use the powder on their children, and that they should move on to some alternative.
“J&J powder is used to make skin softer even when there are rashes from diapers. However, even if you look beyond the lawsuits the company is facing over the talc-based powder causing cancer, it causes respiratory problems like asthma and bronchitis, wheezing, coughing, and shallow breathing due to talc inhalation,” Dr R Narendra, a paediatrician in Hyderabad, explained to South First.
He added that it also causes eyes and throat irritation, diarrhoea, and vomiting, and sometimes even lung damage.
“The talc powder is popular amongst mothers, but it’s time to move on from it,” said the doctor.
Doctors also suggested that many skin-related diseases occur due to talc-based powders.
“It causes bluish skin, fingernails, and lips; irritations on the skin; and sometimes even blisters. Talcum powder is made of talc, which consists of magnesium, silicon and asbestos. Though the company has denied that it uses asbestos — which causes cancer — that is not true. There are many alternatives for this kind of powder. People should use them,” Hyderabad-based dermatologist Dr Maadvi Ravi told South First.
J&J faces around 40,000 lawsuits from consumers and their families around the world, claiming that its talc products caused cancer because they had asbestos.
In 2020, the company stopped selling the talc powder in the US and Canada, and started selling a starch-based powder as an alternative.
The company has had to settle many lawsuits in the US. In one case, the company was asked to pay $4.1 billion to 22 patients affected by its product.
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