A range of Johnson & Johnson beauty products is still available for sale in Uganda, yet the products have been banned in some East African countries.

Three months back, the Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS) said it was banning the importation, distribution, and sale of Johnson & Johnson (J&J) Baby Powder which contains the talc ingredient that causes cancer.

According to TBS, during its investigations, it established that the J&J Baby Powder with the talc ingredient was indeed available in the market.

Last month, the African Centre for Corrective & Preventive Action in Kenya sued the American Multinational Corporation Johnson &Johnson over the sale of talc-based baby powder.

In the petition filed at the High Court, the rights body wants temporary orders barring J&J from continued manufacture, sale, importation, and distribution of the Johnson & Johnson Baby powder in the Kenyan market.

The case in Kenya against Johnson and Johnson has 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.

Consumer advocates are wondering why the Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) is not enforcing the ban and stopping the illegal importation and sale of Johnson & Johnson (J&J) Baby Powder in Uganda yet other East African Countries have stopped them.

“When the powder was banned in Tanzania, we wrote to UNBS questioning them why the product was still on the Ugandan market, they told us that they were going to consider our report but up to now we have not got any communication from them,” Teresa Nannonzzi, a coordinator at Uganda Consumer protection association said.

Nannonzzi said that the fact that the product was banned in other East African countries, was evidence enough to show UNBS that the product is deadly because they as East African countries have harmonized standards.

“UNBS should come out and explain to the country why the products in Uganda are safe yet other East African countries have banned them yet they all have the same suppliers and the same standards. UNBS is just being negligent of consumer’s safety moreover on a product that is not very essential,” Nannonzzi noted.

Nannonzzi called upon the Ugandan standards body to recall all the Johnson and Johnson powder on the market and carry out investigations to establish whether the powder contains the talc ingredient. In case they find out that it is safe, they should issue a statement assuring the public that the products are safe.

Though the continued sale of the baby powder has raised concern among some members of the public, it has been declared safe for use by the Ugandan standards body.

Asked why Ugandan markets still have the powder despite the widespread concerns over their health effects, the UNBS executive director, David Livingstone Ebiru, said that as far as the East African standards unit is concerned, they have not received any formal communication about the Johnson and Johnson powder.

“Those are social media rumors and that is how we are treating them. According to our East African network, we have not had any communication about the risk of the product. If a product is dangerous, we get formal communication from the standards body that carried out the investigations showing us the dangers but in this case, nothing has happened,” Ebiru said.

He also noted that all the imported beauty products on the Ugandan market are safe, saying that they inspect all the goods that come into the country through the Pre-export Verification of Conformity (PVoC) program, they have managed to block millions of goods from entering Uganda because they are below required standards.

“We tested samples of Johnson & Johnson products shipped into the country and detected no traces of talcum. UNBS cannot allow anything harmful to be on the market,” Ebiru said.

In a telephone interview with New Vision, the National Drug Authority spokesperson, Abiaz Rwamwiri, said that he is aware that the powder has been banned in Kenya and Rwanda but as a drugs body, they cannot raise a red flag because it is not their responsibility.

“Under our current law, powder is a cosmetic, not a drug so we cannot comment about it. We can only test the products on the market if there is a public concern,” Rwamwiri, said.

Though UNBS says all the Johnson and Johnson powder on the market is safe, the doctors who deal with children have discouraged mothers from using the brand.

Dr Monica Etima, a pediatrician at AAR clinics noted that as pediatricians these days they discourage mothers from using powder, especially Johnson and Johnson brand because of the counterfeits.

“We realized that they are so many counterfeit powders especially Johnson and Johnson so we discourage mothers from using any powder because we do not know which one is right. We found out that mothers who use powder on their children get rashes,” Dr Etima said.

Dr. Etima advised parents to always use Vaseline because it can also repel water.

“Baby Vaseline works as powder, so instead of spending money on powder go for Vaseline,” Dr Etima said.

Speaking to New Vision, Dr. Shiba Kituka, a lead Paediatrician at International Hospital Kampala (IHK), also said that as pediatricians they do not recommend powder because it is not safe for babies as it causes allergies.

“We found out that many babies who were using powder were reacting, whenever they would inhale the powder through their nostrils it could affect them,” Dr Kituka said.

A senior pediatrician who works at Mulago Hospital and the Ministry of Health, who asked not to be named to speak to protect his job, noted that powder is deadly but because it is a controversial topic, he would want to comment about it.

“Some of these things come in illegally when they have not been approved by UNBS. Some of the illegal products find their way into pharmacies and beauty shops and what is sad some pharmacies say all the products are approved by UNBS yet it might not be true. Mothers are still using these products because of ignorance. UNBS should show us the results that show that the product is safe. Otherwise, the powder can cause respiratory complications like breathing problems, irritation, or a cough. That is why we discourage it,” A senior male doctor who preferred anonymity said.

WHO

J&J has been facing thousands of lawsuits over talcum powder containing traces of asbestos.

On April 4, J&J announced its intention to stop manufacturing the product using talc as an ingredient after the company proposed an $8.9 billion (Sh21 trillion) settlement to resolve years-old lawsuits claiming that its talcum powder products caused cancer.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) in a 2019 Report by its Department of Public Health, Environment and Social Determinant of Health, indicate that Benzene is a well-established cause of cancer in humans.

Talc, according to health 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.