Rising up with a Black mother and grandma, I used to be conditioned to affiliate a number of key issues with femininity: a completely lotioned and glistening physique, gold jewellery, and at all times smelling wonderful. As an grownup, I stick with it the legacy of smelling good by sustaining a formidable arsenal of perfumes, scented physique oils, and lotions. However regardless of my efforts, I can by no means fairly replicate that candy, long-lasting scent my elders achieved. It wasn’t till I used to be scrolling on TikTok lately that I got here throughout the factor I didn’t understand I’d been lacking: dusting powder.
In case you’re unfamiliar, dusting powder is a finely milled scented powder used on the physique to maintain moisture at bay, soften the pores and skin, and make you odor good—or clear, on the very least. Dusting powders have been notably well-liked again within the ‘80s and ‘90s (particularly amongst Black ladies) however physique powders first hit America within the Nineties when Johnson & Johnson started to market their now-famous child powder.
Dusting powders have been quiet within the mainstream for a number of many years—extra on why in a minute—however, this 12 months, Black ladies have been main a revival of the product by sharing their DIY dusting powder concoctions on TikTok underneath #dustingpowder, which, on the time I’m scripting this, has over 1,100 movies tagged to it. “Let’s convey again fragrance dusting powders for magnetism and glamour magic,” one consumer writes within the caption of her video.
If the booming perfume business is any indication, individuals haven’t misplaced the will to odor good. So why did dusting powders exit of fashion? One offender might be the general public’s wariness about talc, a main ingredient in numerous these powders that have been well-liked 30+ years in the past. “Talc is a naturally occurring mineral that was [commonly] used as a sensory modifier and absorbent in powder merchandise,” says beauty chemist Amanda Lam. Talc is just not dangerous by nature, however some talc-based merchandise have examined constructive for asbestos contamination, giving talc a foul popularity general.
The beginnings of widespread concern about talc started within the Seventies after most cancers researchers examined 20 powder merchandise made with talc and located 10 of them had asbestos. In 1997, a declare was made in opposition to Johnson & Johnson by a lady alleging that the usage of the corporate’s child powder led to her growing most cancers. That case was finally dropped, however different lawsuits arose within the following years, additional inflicting the popularity of physique powders to drop—with shoppers and producers. “Ever for the reason that ongoing Johnson & Johnson lawsuits, corporations have been cautious of utilizing talc,” says Lam.