Fibrous and Mineral Content of Cosmetic Talcum Products

In searching for sources of fibers ubiquitous to our everyday environment and of respirable size, the authors examined 22 talcum products commonly available on retail shelves and found fiber contents ranging from 8 to 30% by count, with an average of 19%. Fibrous particulates were generally under 1.0 μ in diameter with lengths ranging from 1.5 to 6.0 μ. From 0.3 to 3.0% quartz was found in 21 of the samples and the remaining sample had 54.4% quartz. The samples were also analyzed for metals; with four exceptions, the levels of cobalt, nickel, chromium and manganese were low. Further research will be needed to assess the significance of these findings.