Document 0aaVy9a5w0drzGEeLk8jXQ3d

FILE NAME Newspaper & Magazine Articles NMA DATE 1972 June 17 DOC NMA066 DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION NYT - Talc Warning is Labeled False Dy unvE LIGHT LANDI LIIN New York Times Currentfile Jun 17 1972 ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times 1851 - 20 Pg 31 Talc Warning Is Labeled False By GRACE LICHTENSTEIN The medical researcher who did tests on asbestos in baby powder for the city's Environmental Protection Administration charged yesterday that the agency had misinterpreted his analyses and published false data The researcher Dr. Arthur M. Langer of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine said it was absolutely untrue that samples of Johnson & Johnson and Landers baby powders tested in a preliminary study contained from 5 to 25 per cent asbes- tos fiberass reported by the city office On the contrary Dr. Lan- ger said further more. tailed analysis found that there were only trace ' amounts of asbestos in John, son & Johnson powder Of ; all the talcs we've looked at Johnson & Johnson is the most pure he said ! No Detectable Asbestos Jerome Kretchmer the En- vironmental Protection Ad- i ministrator who brought up | the alleged danger of asbes- ' tos in talc a year ago said yesterday " concede the tests results have changed But he suggested that the talc manufacturers might have removed the asbestos from the products in the months since the issue was first raised He said he had no evidence however to prove that the formulations had been changed Meanwhile a spokesman for the Food and Drug Ad- ministration in Washington said yesterday that results from tests made in March showed no detectable content of asbestos in Johnson & Johnson baby powder and only minor amounts about 1 per cent ~ in the Landers product The city's environmental agency had warned parents not to use baby powder especially on infants until the asbestos question was cleared up since asbestos is known to cause lung cancer years after being inhaled Kretchmer Cites Letter But Dr. Robert M. Schaffner director of the Office of Product Technology for the F.D.A. said that out of 40 Federal talcum samples recently tested by the Federal agency 30 contained only 1 per cent or less of asbestos One sam- ple is being tested Dr. Schaffner said that in light of this research we would not agree with the warning on tale Mr. Kretchmer said his agency had heard of the new test results only after the Environmental Protection Ad- ministration released a letter from James R. Marshall director of public information ' to a consumer In the letter Mr. Marshall named Johnson & Johnson and Landers as being the two brands in which the E.P.A. had found 5 to 25 per cent asbestos more than a year ago The letter was dated June 8 . Mr. Marshall said yesterday he had not known about Dr. Langer's later analyses absolving Johnson & John- son when he wrote the letter But he contended that Dr. Langer's original report to the E.P.A. on May 10 1971 had clearly warned about possible danger in using baby powder The report said in part The amounts of fiber pres- ent in these samples as determined by light microscopy ranges from 5 to 25 per cent . . . Please note that these results are preliminary in na- ture and that some further investigations are warranted to delineate whether or not a health hazard exists with these materials . . It is of interest to note that some recent observations do suggest a hazard exists Substi tute materials should be considered until the problem is clarified Dr. Langer said yesterday that with light microscopy you see only the gross fibers He said that what he thought to be mineral fibers turned out in later research to be talc itself Harold Romer consultant to the Commissioner of Air Resources said Dr. Langer had spoken to him about the new findings but that he was led to believe that there was a difference of perhaps I per cent rather than a drop to trace amounts Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner Further reproduction prohibited without permission