The NIOSH Pocket Guide identifies inhalation and eye contact as exposure routes for talc containing no asbestos and less than 1% quartz, and lists fibrotic pneumoconiosis and eye irritation among symptoms or effects; it gives a NIOSH respirable-dust REL of 2 mg/m3 as a TWA.
Source: CDC/NIOSH: NIOSH Pocket Guide — Talc (containing no asbestos and less than 1% quartz) ↗Dust entry
Talc dust
Respirable mineral dust generated during talc mining, milling, handling, or use.
Airborne form
dust
The form describes what is suspended in air at the point of exposure. A material can produce more than one form, such as dust during handling and fume during heating.
Health effects
fibrotic pneumoconiosistalcosis concerneye irritationrespiratory-system effectspulmonary fibrosisnon-malignant respiratory diseaselung-cancer mortality signal in one worker cohort
Evidence
The current NIOSH Pocket Guide sets a 2 mg/m³ respirable time-weighted-average REL for talc containing no asbestos and less than 1% quartz, describes an odorless white powder, and reports fibrotic pneumoconiosis and eye irritation.
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Exposure Limits; Physical Description; Exposure Routes; Symptoms · 1
Exposure Limits; Physical Description; Exposure Routes; Symptoms · 1
NIOSH REL TWA 2 mg/m³ (resp). Physical Description Odorless, white powder. Exposure Routes inhalation, skin and/or eye contact. Symptoms Fibrotic pneumoconiosis, irritation eyes.
A CDC/NIOSH-indexed study of talc miners and millers reported excess non-malignant respiratory disease and pulmonary fibrosis associated with talc-ore dust exposure; the study also observed excess lung-cancer mortality but stated that talc ore dust may not have caused that excess.
Source: CDC/NIOSH: Mortality Among Workers at a Talc Mining and Milling Facility ↗A NIOSH rubber-manufacturing HHE found signs of pneumoconiosis in 21% of 108 participating workers and obstructive lung disease in another 22%; NIOSH attributed the respiratory impairment to past excessive airborne talc exposure while noting that current measured exposures were below criteria after controls improved.
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page 16 · Conclusions · 1
page 16 · Conclusions · 1
Pulmonary function tests and chest x-rays indicate past airborne talc dust exposures to be of significant magnitude to have caused pneumoconiosis in one of every five workers included in our study. Obstructive lung disease, which was found in another 22% of the workers, was significantly more prevalent among smokers and ex-smokers. Environmental measurements during the NIOSH evaluation have shown that all airborne talc dust levels were below OSHA standards and ACGIH TLV criteria, and that further respiratory impairment due to current exposures is unlikely under these conditions.
NIOSH's IDLH record for talc states that the revised IDLH is 1,000 mg/m3 and that the toxic effects described in the literature result from chronic exposure; it lists a respirable-dust REL of 2 mg/m3 as an 8-hour TWA.
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Immediately Dangerous to Life or Health Concentrations (IDLH) · 1
Immediately Dangerous to Life or Health Concentrations (IDLH) · 1
NIOSH REL: 2 mg/m3 (respirable dust) TWA ... The toxic effects of talc that which are described in the literature result from chronic exposures to this substance. ... Revised IDLH: 1,000 mg/m3.
Controls
- enclosed talc handling
- local exhaust ventilation
- dust collection
- exposure monitoring
- appropriate respiratory protection