Bahrain is free of baby talcum powder tainted with asbestos, a known carcinogen, the Health Ministry has confirmed.
Inspectors tested samples of Johnson & Johnson baby powder over the weekend, after the American multinational corporation on Friday recalled around 33,000 bottles of a batch of the talc that tested positive.
The recall followed the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) announcement on the same day that tests detected asbestos in a single bottle of the product bought online.
Increased and prolonged exposure to asbestos has been proven to cause cancers in humans.
A common cancer for those exposed to the mineral is the very rare form of deadly cancer called mesothelioma which develops from the thin layer of tissue that covers many of the internal organs (known as the mesothelium).
The most common area affected is the lining of the lungs and chest wall.
Health Ministry’s Public Health Assistant Under-Secretary Dr Maryam Al Hajri confirmed in a statement yesterday that no talc of the said batch are available in Bahrain.
“Bahrain’s markets are free from the baby powder from Johnson & Johnson which were found to contain traces of asbestos powder as announced in the US markets,” she said.
“Public health inspectors were instructed to follow up on the issue after warning messages were circulated on various media, to ensure that the products were not available in the country.
“Samples of the products were taken for laboratory analysis and were proven asbestos-free.”
Dr Al Hajri assured that the Public Health Department and its consumer safety group were always alert and monitoring all consumer products in the market to ensure they comply with the health requirements.
Johnson & Johnson Consumer (JJCI) said in a statement people who own a bottle of Johnson’s Baby Powder from Lot #22318RB should stop using it, also announcing refunds.
However, pharmacies in Bahrain said they were not aware of the issue and they were still selling the product, though it was not clear if from the tainted batch.
Johnson & Johnson is facing lawsuits from thousands of women, claiming its talcum products contributed to their cancers.
In 2016, the GDN reported that Bahrain’s Health Ministry was awaiting a decision from the GCC Supreme Council for Health about the baby powder, after it was pulled off the shelves in Qatar.
This followed the company being ordered to pay $72 million to the family of American Jacqueline Fox who died aged 62 from ovarian cancer that her relatives claimed was caused because she used the company’s products for more than 35 years.
The manufacturer has denied Johnson’s Baby Powder contained asbestos and a pharmacy chain in Bahrain even initiated a promotion offering a BD1 voucher for every BD5 spent on Johnson & Johnson products.
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