Report’s cancer scare in popular toothpaste

The manufacturer, however, insists the brand is safe, citing the rigorous US Food and Drug Administration process that led to the toothpaste’s 1997 approval. Dar authorities say they’re studying the report      

As thousands of Tanzanians put Colgate Total in their mouths every day to brush their teeth, could they also be putting themselves at the risk of acquiring cancer? That could be the case, going by a new report published by the news agency, Bloomberg.

Colgate Total is made from a chemical known as triclosan which, reports Bloomberg, has been linked to cancer-cell growth and disrupted development in animals.

Yesterday, the local regulator—Tanzania Foods and Drugs Authority (TFDA) confirmed it had been made aware of the report. The agency’s spokesperson, Ms Gaudensia Simwanza, said TFDA has instructed its experts to work on the Bloomberg report before determining the fate of the product.

Ms Simwanza, however, further told The Citizen that Colgate Total was approved for us in the country, after the agency conducted a test and established that the amount of triclosan available in the product (0.3 per cent) doesn’t have any health hazards to human beings.

She noted that the 0.3 amount contained in Colgate Total is fit for human consumption from the age of 12 and above.

For their part, US regulators are currently reviewing whether it is safe to put the chemical in soap, and toys and consumer firms are phasing it out.

The Citizen yesterday, established that Colgate Total was available in various supermarkets and shops in the city—and a brand of choice for high-end users.

The manufacturer, Colgate Palmolive insists that Total is safe, citing the rigorous US Food and Drug Administration process that led to the toothpaste’s 1997 approval as an over-the-counter drug, according to a report published yesterday by Bloomberg News.

But, according to Bloomberg report, a closer look at that application process, however, reveals that some of the scientific findings Colgate put forward to establish triclosan’s safety in toothpaste weren’t black and white—and weren’t, until this year, available to the public.

The pages show how even with one of the US’s most stringent regulatory processes— FDA approval of a new drug—America’s government relies on company-backed science to show products are safe and effective, says a report by Bloomberg.

The recently released pages,. Colgate’s Total application included 35 pages summarising toxicology studies on triclosan, which the FDA withheld from view.

The agency released the pages earlier this year in response to a lawsuit over a Freedom of Information Act request. Later, following inquiries from Bloomberg News, the FDA put the pages on its website.