Baby powder on girls.

[storm]

When I had Zaccie my sil told me not to use baby powder coz the midwives told her it has been linked to cervical cancer. ( ummmmm I know Zaccie's a boy)ROFL
when I had Angel, nobody told me this, had anybody heard of it or been warned about it?
I love baby powder & am a bit worried about using it.

[christy]

I have heard it & haven't used it on either of my girls at all. There are alternatives but I would have to find the old threads about it

[visitor1]

Yes i was told no powder on the vaginal region as it can lead to reproducton problems. Talc in the raw form is asbestos. They also beleive thats why there are so many fertility issues in women today.

If i use powder (under her arms and chin so soak up moisture) the best to use is pure cornstarch.

[storm]

Oh wow, thanks Kim!

[julesr]

Yup I've heard this too. So I use Johnson's cornstarch powder. It's talc that's the baddie ingredient.

FYI - the Curash zinc powder contains talc even though it doesn't say so on the bottle. I actually contacted them to find out for sure.

[Mother Goose]

I had heard about this (can't remember where - probably BB!) and so never bought talc for DD. But noone at the hospital mentioned it to me at all!!!!!

[Rachel]

WOW, I have never heard of this and I was actually told to use powder on DD nether regions as they were getting quite moist - will have to do some research on this I think...

[*becstar*]

OMG!!! I had no idea! just told DH and he and I both said at the same time...."no more powder then!". Oh good lord what have I done? lol we've always use baby powder on DD...

[Trish]

I don't use talc on Tehya either. I won't say that I haven't though. I found out about the cancer link and the talc really collects in her labia. Poor buggar. If I ever use it it's the pure cornstarch one and I put a little on my hands and smooth it under her chin and her back.

[Catastrophic]

OMG, I am about to go into DD's room and chuck out all her Talc powder, i havn't used any yet, because i did get told about the SIDS risk shannon spoke about... But never about cancer!

[CatherineL]

Yeah - i read an article about talc being a SIDS risk and also about the asbestos in the raw form of talc. The article suggests to use cornstarch instead like Trish mentioned. When my gf had a daughter last year, she was also told by her midwife not to use it for the same reasons as stated above.

[paradise lost]

My mum used talc every single day of her life. She died of cervical cancer. The other big risk factors are hireditary and HPV. She was the first woman to die of cancer in her family for 4 generations and she had 2 partners her whole life, one of whom, my dad, was definately a virgin. It makes you wonder... I never use it on DD.

hana

[mrsmac]

You know my Mum ALWAYS Used Talc powder everyday
She died from Ovarian Cancer
MAkes you wonder

Same here, every night after a shower mum put talc on everywhere. She died of ovarian cancer 2 weeks after she turned 61.

[AnyDream]

Hello, talc is definitely carcinogenic, either use a cornstarch based powder (if you have to at all) or opt for a product like Amolin cream (even though it's creamy it is plant oil based and does an excellent job preventing nappy rash).

HTH.

[Trish]

Here is some food for thought girls

Q. What is talc?
A. Talc is a mineral, produced by the mining of talc rocks and then processed by crushing, drying and milling. Processing eliminates a number of trace minerals from the talc, but does not separate minute fibers which are very similar to asbestos.
Q. What kinds of consumer products contain talc?
A. Talc is found in a wide variety of consumer products ranging from home and garden pesticides to antacids. However, the products most widely used and that pose the most serious health risks are body powders Talc is the main ingredient in baby powder, medicated powders, perfumed powders and designer perfumed body powders. Because talc is resistant to moisture, it is also used by the pharmaceutical industry to manufacture medications and is a listed ingredient of some antacids. Talc is the principal ingredient home and garden pesticides and flea and tick powders. Talc is used in smaller quantities in deodorants, chalk, crayons, textiles, soap, insulating materials, paints, asphalt filler, paper, and in food processing.
Q. Why is talc harmful?
A. Talc is closely related to the potent carcinogen asbestos. Talc particles have been shown to cause tumors in the ovaries and lungs of cancer victims. For the last 30 years, scientists have closely scrutinized talc particles and found dangerous similarities to asbestos. Responding to this evidence in 1973, the FDA drafted a resolution that would limit the amount of asbestos-like fibers in cosmetic grade talc. However, no ruling has ever been made and today, cosmetic grade talc remains non-regulated by the federal government. This inaction ignores a 1993 National Toxicology Program report which found that cosmetic grade talc, without any asbestos-like fibers, caused tumors in animal subjects.1 Clearly with or without asbestos-like fibers, cosmetic grade talcum powder is a carcinogen.
Q. What kind of exposure is dangerous?
A. Talc is toxic. Talc particles cause tumors in human ovaries and lungs. Numerous studies have shown a strong link between frequent use of talc in the female genital area and ovarian cancer. Talc particles are able to move through the reproductive system and become imbedded in the lining of the ovary. Researchers have found talc particles in ovarian tumors and have found that women with ovarian cancer have used talcum powder in their genital area more frequently than healthy women.2
Talc poses a health risk when exposed to the lungs. Talc miners have shown higher rates of lung cancer and other respiratory illnesses from exposure to industrial grade talc, which contains dangerous silica and asbestos. The common household hazard posed by talc is inhalation of baby powder by infants. Since the early 1980s, records show that several thousand infants each year have died or become seriously ill following accidental inhalation of baby powder.3
Q. What about infants?
A. Talc is used on babies because it absorbs unpleasant moisture. Clearly, dusting with talcum powder endangers an infant's lungs at the prospect of inhalation. Exposing children to this carcinogen is unnecessary and dangerous.
ACTIONS YOU CAN TAKE:
1. Do not buy or use products containing talc. It is especially important that women not apply talc to underwear or sanitary pads.
2. Contact your pediatrician and/or local hospital and find out if they have a policy regarding talc use and infants.
3. Write to the FDA and express your concern that a proven carcinogen has remained unregulated while millions of people are unknowingly exposed.
References:
1.National Toxicology Program. "Toxicology and carcinogenesis studies of talc (GAS No 14807-96-6) in F344/N rats and B6C3F, mice (Inhalation studies)." Technical Report Series No. 421. September 1993.
2. Harlow BL, Cramer DW, Bell DA, Welch WR. "Perineal exposure to talc and ovarian cancer risk." Obstetrics & Gynecology, 80: 19-26, 1992.
3. Hollinger MA. "Pulmonary toxicity of inhaled and intravenous talc." Toxicology Letters, 52:121-127, 1990.

[julesr]

Hope this works - here is the link to the old thread about talc. In this thread is an old post of mine with the exact response from Curash about their powder containing talc.

Baby Powder

I used talcum powder for years and years, since I was a kid...I only stopped using it since reading this thread!

[storm]

Holy cow!!!!!!! Now i feel sick!

[Trish]

Just wanted to add girls that this wasn't something I needed to search through a whole heap of links for either. This was the first one I came across.

Scarey stuff. Tomorrow I WILL be telling my mum No more codge deodorant That's what I call it.