I first heard this one 30+ years ago, and I always wondered if it was an urban myth of the bizarre variety. But here it is again, this time backed by research from Harvard Medical School. Epidemiologists there sorted through years of data from the Nurses Health Study regarding who used talcum powder on their nether parts, and whether those who did were more likely to contract ovarian cancer compared with those who dusted not.
Turns out that those who took a weekly powder were 36% more likely to end up with ovarian tumors, and a daily dousing raised the risk 41%. Talcum powder is made from hydrous magnesium silicate which has properties similar to asbestos. Neither talc nor asbestos has any business on your bum!
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8 comments:
Luckily, I haven't done that in many, many years!
I never knew this. Thanks for the *bottoms up.*
Bear((( )))
What about all the baby powder I doused on my daughter's bottoms when they were in diapers??
Yikes. Remember that "feminine hygiene" spray (and the TV ads for it)? Probably full of talc, and heaven knows what else.
Now, this is interesting (not that your previous posts have not been.) You and I have an Alzheimer's family history. For some time, I have been avoiding aluminum; e.g., in waffle mix but even in antiperspirants. Can it be that my crackpotism has been prescient?
When I wanted to powder my baby's bum, I used corn starch powder.
Talc is finely ground rock, and I didn't want my kids breathing rocks, so I didn't use it.
Oh, yes, cornstarch also got used in soothing baths when they got chickenpox.
Sad to say I didn't switch away from talc-based powders until maybe 10 years ago; hopefully it wasn't too late. Now I use Vagisil powder, which has no talc. My husband uses it too since I was afraid he might be inhaling talc when he used the other kind. Thankfully he isn't humiliated by using something called Vagisil!
I've been doing a little research on asbestos. I never knew exactly what it was....a rock that can be woven into a fabric and has fantastic insulating properties. Several articles I read said that talc is often contaminated with a certain type of asbestos (can't keep those technical words in my head these days).
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