Talc is a key ingredient in powder cosmetics, it may contain asbestos

Do you know that every time you grab that face powder, setting powder, blush or eyeshadow, you are putting cancer-causing asbestos on your face and eyes?

How come? You might ask.

The answer is talc. Yup, that thought-to-be “inoffensive” little ingredient that we likely grew up using. Talc is a key ingredient in powder cosmetics and in the most popular brands of powder foundation, setting powders, blush, eyeshadows and even dry shampoo.

So, what is the problem with talc? Isn’t it in baby powder?

Not anymore because it may have asbestos and exposure to asbestos…well you know this one, can cause cancer.

Johnson & Johnson had to pull its baby powder from the market because of the dangerous levels of asbestos in talc. Their new baby powder is talc-free and uses corn starch instead.

So, if Johnson & Johnson was forced to make this multi-million change, why do cosmetics brands continue to use it as a key ingredient in powder cosmetics like powder foundation, blush and eyeshadows? Because it is cheaper and inadequately deemed innocuous.

But wait, how could asbestos possibly be in talc?

The issue is about acceptable/safe thresholds.

The tl:dr:

• Talc comes from mines.

• Talc mines, because nature designed it this way, are usually found next to asbestos mines. So the presence of asbestos veins in talc mines is absolutely possible.

• To claim that talc is “asbestos-free”, thresholds have to be met for the level of asbestos allowed to be in talc. The problem is that today's technology is not able to detect asbestos below a certain level. That level is higher than the threshold required for talc to be asbestos free, allowing for larger-than-safe amounts of asbestos to be in talc.

• Beauty companies know this, yet some prefer to use talc and settle a lawsuit than to let its consumers know and quickly find alternatives and safer ingredients.

Today, there is no such thing as talc that is "asbestos-free"; even if some beauty brands claim that the talc that they use is medical grade (I worked at a brand that made that claim) or confirmed by suppliers as asbestos-free, with today’s testing technology, that claim simply cannot be made.

Asbestos is the primary known cause of malignant mesothelioma. A study of 75 people with malignant mesothelioma found that the only asbestos exposure the individuals had experienced was from repeated exposure to cosmetic talcum powders. The conclusion was that mesothelioma can develop following exposures to cosmetic talcum powders.

“When I was told I had one-to-two years to live, I was shocked and panicked. I wear makeup every day, and to find out that the thing I put on my face which I’ve been buying since I was 12 years old caused this was awful. I felt sick and guilty, and so did my mum because we both wore the makeup and could have exposed each other.” - Jade Jenkins, who developed Peritoneal Mesothelioma, article by The Guardian

Not all powder cosmetics will necessarily contain asbestos-laced talc. And, not all of our bodies will react the same way. But, with safer alternatives, wearing products with talc feels too much like playing Russian roulette.

So what’s the solution?

We are so excited about our new purchase or are so busy with life that we skip looking at the carton our dear new purchase came in and just toss it away. But, if you look at that ingredients list, the first ingredient you are likely to see is talc.

I’m not saying don’t wear powders or bronzers or eyeshadow. Just check the ingredients. There are brands like Ilia, Westman Atelier and Saie that don’t use talc because they know it is a carcinogen.

Makeup is expensive. When I found out about the issue with talc, I couldn’t just throw out my Bobbi Brown bronzer or my nude finishing powder. Until I finished them, I held my breath while applying them and I softly patted the brush on my cheeks vs my classic, fast brush left, right, up and down that had me inhaling that talc-based powder for a few minutes. Though, my skin was still absorbing the product. In hindsight, this was like quitting smoking...I wish I had trashed those products immediately.

We are now told that 1 out of 3 of us will get cancer in our lives. That is unacceptable.

If the brands we trust cannot be trusted with our health, then let’s empower ourselves to make better choices for our health starting early.

So next time you are at Ulta, Sephora or your favorite beauty counter, remember to ask for the carton and look at the ingredients. And, take care of yourself, if it has talc, then ask for a product that is talc-free. I replaced my face powder with Kosas BB Burst Hydrating Tinted Gel Cream and my bronzer with BiotechBeauty's BiomeBronze, which has amazing color and opacity. The ingredients are not harmful and both give a very natural finish

Lastly, it is our purchase behavior as consumers that drives brands to offer products. If we start demanding (buying) products without talc, the beauty brands will get the message and start aligning product innovation to consumer demands.

If you'd like to send me a love note, I'm at Alexandria@alexandriacollective.com

p.s., And, if you’re more interested in the Johnson & Johnson story, I recommend reading No More Tears: The Dark Secrets of Johnson & Johnson by New York Times journalist Gardiner Harris

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Sources:

Bird T, Steffen JE, Tran TH, Egilman DS. A Review of the Talc Industry’s Influence on Federal Regulation and Scientific Standards for Asbestos in Talc. NEW SOLUTIONS: A Journal of Environmental and Occupational Health Policy. 2021;31(2):152-169. doi:10.1177/1048291121996645

Emory TS, Maddox JC, Kradin RL. Malignant mesothelioma following repeated exposures to cosmetic talc: A case series of 75 patients. Am J Ind Med. 2020 Jun;63(6):484-489. doi: 10.1002/ajim.23106. Epub 2020 Mar 16. PMID: 32175619; PMCID: PMC7317550.

The Estee Lauder Companies. Q1 FY2025 Earnings Call. October 31, 2024. Corrected Transcript: "In addition, from late August through October of this year, we entered into agreements with certain plaintiff law firms to settle approximately 70% of pending talcum powder cases and established annual capped amounts with each participating law firm for potential future claims over the next five years, starting on January 1, 2025. As a result, we recorded a charge of $159 million related to these agreements. We entered into these agreements in response the rising number of cases brought against the company, as well as to proactively help to mitigate future risk from the evolving litigation landscape related to talc"