Mixed reaction as UNBS clears ‘dangerous’ beauty products

A range of Johnson & Johnson beauty and personal care products. UNBS yesterday said its scientists in March tested the products and found out that the did not have any cancer-causing contents. COURTESY PHOTO

A range of Johnson & Johnson beauty and personal care products, whose users in the United States have filed multiple cases, alleging they cause cancer, have been declared “safe for use” by a Ugandan standards agency regulator.
The Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) yesterday said its scientists in March tested samples of Johnson & Johnson products shipped into the country and detected no traces of talcum or talc.

Talc, according to information gathered from various websites, is a mineral comprising elements such as magnesium, silicon, and oxygen.
Although the powder form readily absorbs moisture and helps reduce friction, scientists say talc contains asbestos that can cause ovarian and lung cancers.

The piling of cases filed by clients against Johnson & Johnson, and a growing list of hefty awards by American courts against the firm, have sparked public debate on the safety of the products that include powder, cream, soap and jelly that adults and children in many Ugandan households use.
The Johnson & Johnson’s products broadly fall under three categories; the consumer products, pharmaceutical products and medical devices.

Asked why the company’s products such as clear facial wash, shower gels and body care, powder and the clinically-proven neutrogena skin care solutions were still on the market in spite of widespread concerns over their health effects, the UNBS spokesperson, Mr Godwin Muhwezi, noted: “Following complaints from the public, we picked up samples from the market in March and we tested them for talc and we did not find any cancer-causing contents.”

Ms Jackline Namagembe is a Ugandan woman, who has used Johnson & Johnson products since 2004 said she is stressed by news of the increasing number of Americans claiming they got cancer as a result of using Johnson & Johnson products.

“At [my] home, even mama kits contain Johnson & Johnson products. It is what we have been using. Many people are now talking about the products causing cancer and I have to fear,” Ms Namaganda said.

As of July 22, Johnson & Johnson was facing at least 14,000 lawsuits claiming its baby powder caused ovarian cancer and mesothelioma, the US media outlet, Consumer News and Business Channel, reported.

British public broadcaster, the BBC, on July 13, 2018, reported that a jury in the US state of Missouri, ordered the multinational company to pay out $4.7b (Shs17.2 trillion) in damages to 22 women, who proved that it is the company’s talc products that led them to develop ovarian cancer.
In another case, a California jury also ordered the company to pay out a $29.4m (Shs108b) to a woman, who believed that her mesothelioma was caused because of her regular use of Johnson & Johnson’s powder, CNN reported on March 14.

Johnson & Johnson, which is headquartered in New Jersey, in the US, said early this year that it respected the legal proceedings, but questioned the jury verdicts as “not medical, scientific or regulatory conclusions about a product”.

Ms Kimberly Montagnino, the director of Global Issues Management, Consumer at Johnson & Johnson, in a March 14 statement to CNN said: “Plaintiffs’ attorneys have fundamentally failed to show that Johnson’s Baby Powder contains asbestos, and their own experts concede that they are not recognising the accepted definition of asbestos and are ignoring crucial distinctions between minerals that are asbestos and minerals that are not.”
The assurances have not allayed fears in Uganda and piling lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson in US have also not affected demand for its products, according to retailers.

Ms Phiona Ahimbisibwe, a trader in Kikuubo, a Kampala business hub, who sells cosmetics, said the “negative publicity” has not affected the sale of the products.

“We are working normally. Customers still come and buy the Johnson & Johnson products despite the negative publicity,” She said.
Mr Shaban Sserunkuma, the director of programmes at Consumer Education Trust (CONSENT), a civil society organisation advocating consumer rights, said government should take firm action on Johnson & Johnson products considering the health issues raised in the United States.
There is no independent research done in Uganda to establish whether or not the growing cases of cancer is linked to beauty and personal care products.