We are quite certain that at one point or the other, we have all used baby powder. As the name suggests, baby powder is used for keeping an infant’s skin dry, smooth and supple.
One of the reasons many people find babies cute is probably because of how nice they scent – most often than not, baby powder is attributed to that scent. But are there some hazards associated with the use of baby powder? Is baby powder flammable?
Well, there is no straightforward answer to this question. Baby powder can be flammable in the right circumstance. When dispersed in air, it can catch fire easily due to the higher surface area and greater oxygen to fuel ratio. But if stored in a bottle, it is less likely to catch fire.
Now it’s time to delve deeper into this topic by taking a closer look at the types of baby powder and the hazard associated with them, especially in terms of catching fire.
Contents
What Is Baby Powder?
Baby powder is popularly used by mothers to prevent diaper rash on their babies. In fact, almost every diaper bag usually has a bottle of baby powder in it.
Most popular brands of baby powder are made of talc or cornstarch with usually a tiny dash of fragrance.
Apart from use on babies, baby powder can be used as a dry shampoo to remove dandruff or as a cleaning agent to remove grease stains. Due to its pleasant scent, it can be used as a freshener.
What Is Baby Powder Made Of?
Baby powder is traditionally made from talcum powder which is a Hydrated magnesium phyllosilicate mineral.
Popular baby powder brands like Johnson & Johnson used talcum powder to make baby powder. However, there has been some controversy associated with the use of talcum.
For instance, the 1000 lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson by women claimed that the company is covering up the possible cancer risk associated with its baby powder.
These controversies have led to the discontinuation of the sale of talcum baby powder in the US and Canada.
Nowadays, most baby powders are made from corn starch – starch derived from corn (maize) grain. This is probably because of the possible hazards associated with the use of baby powder. We will take a look at this hazard below.
Is Baby Powder Flammable?
Under the right circumstances, baby powder will be flammable. If you pour a bottle of baby powder over a burning candle, it will probably douse the flame (please do not try this).
However, if the powder is distributed in the air to a point where the particles are mixed in with the surrounding air very thoroughly, then it is very flammable. This is because tiny particles have a large surface area compared to their volume.
Anyone who’s worked in a factory that creates a lot of dust knows that all dust particles are potential fire hazards in the right circumstances. When dust particles mix with air, it will probably cause a fire hazard at the right temperature.
Thus, most factories that deal with dust particles like flour mill, corn starch, talc, etc., get tons of warnings all over the place about explosion hazards.
Possible Hazards Associated with the Use of Baby Powder
There has been some recent controversy regarding the safety of baby powder. As mentioned earlier, the popular baby powder brand has to discontinue the sale of talcum baby powder after they faced series of lawsuits from women who claimed that the powder increases the risks of ovarian cancer.
This, however, led to some pertinent questions as to the safety of the powder.
For instance, pediatricians are concerned about how inhaling the powder may affect a child’s lungs. Most pediatricians recommend that parents should consider alternatives to powder, like baby oil and other oil-based lotions or cream.
There have also been claims that most baby powders contain asbestos which causes mesothelioma, a rare cancer tied to asbestos exposure. Although most popular baby powder brands refuted this claim, one can never be too careful.
Safety Precautions to Apply When Using Baby Powder
Remember, we have already established that baby powder can be quite flammable in the right circumstances and may even result in a fire hazard. It follows that some safety precautions should be adopted in the use of baby powder:
- Stay away from naked flame if you intend to use baby powder
- Use baby powder in a well-ventilated space to easily disperse the powder in the air
- Do not in any circumstances smoke around babies
- Always keep the bottle of baby powder close
- Ideally, keep the baby powder in a cold, dark place when not in use
Conclusion
Note that both talcum and cornstarch baby powder is prone to explosion when in dust particles. This answers the question, is baby powder flammable? As such, safety measures should be adopted in the use of baby powder.
To be on the safer side, we recommend that you switch to cornstarch-based baby powder until the whole controversy of talcum-based baby powder is cleared up.
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