On Wed, 20 Oct 2004 19:34:45 +0000 (UTC), Andrew Barss
wrote:

I did a quick Google search, and found this:

Preserve me from students armed witha quick blast of Google !

http://www.preventcancer.com/consume...etics/talc.htm
http://www.doctorgeorge.com/article.php?sid=688

which cite studies suggesting that talc by itself is a carcinogen.

First of all, one of those refs cites one study that suggest a
possibility of talc as a carcinogen. Now carcinogenity is always a
tricky thing to prove, and especially so in rodent studies. Ever kept
rats ? They develop tumours if you look at them funny! The natural
state of a rat is to either be eaten or to develop skin tumours. A
one-off rodent study alone just isn't convincing proof.

Secondly, did you look at the exposure mechanisms ?

First of all there's inhalation. We're trying to _wipe_ the tablesaw
here, not to pretend it's Columbian Rustproofing.

Secondly - well, if you're doing _that_ with your tablesaw, you really
need to get out more.

Finally you're into "tampons considered harmful" territory. Americn
medical science is bad enough at the best of times, there being so
many vested interests trying to skew the results. Since TSS was
recognised, the veracity and independence of _anything_ involving
tampon health risks is just a minefield of checking who paid for the
study, and who is trying to rubish competitors products.

Dust exposure in a woodworking workshop is a serious issue. This week
I've been exposed to epoxy (fume and sanding dust), a variety of
timbers being sanded, spalted timbers (spores), damp timbers (spores),
eroding firebricks, many sorts of asbestos sheet, silver-solder flux
(which is pure evil in powder form) and the ever-present risk of my
unearthed dust collector exploding. I've even got a jar of silex in
there - air float silica, one of the nastiest inhalation hazards you
can find. Just yesterday someone even lit up a cigarette in there.

So I'm going to worry about _talc_ somewhere between earthquake, flood
and Attack By Giant Flying Robots.

--
Smert' spamionam