Talcum powder is made from talc, a mineral made up mainly of the elements magnesium, silicon, and oxygen. As a powder, it absorbs moisture well and helps cut down on friction, making it useful for keeping skin dry and helping to prevent rashes. It is widely used in cosmetic products such as baby powder and adult body and facial powders, as well as in a number of other consumer products. The therapeutic action of talc instilled into the pleural cavity is believed to result from induction of an inflammatory reaction. This reaction promotes adherence of the visceral and parietal pleura, obliterating the pleural space and preventing reaccumulation of pleural fluid. Sterile Talc Powder, administered intrapleurally via chest tube, is indicated as a sclerosing agent to decrease the recurrence of malignant pleural effusions in symptomatic patients. The most often reported adverse experiences to intrapleurally-administered talc were fever and pain.

Silicon dioxide (silica) is most commonly found in nature as quartz, as well as in various living organisms. Silicon dioxide one of the most complex and most abundant families of materials, existing both as several minerals and being produced synthetically. In food and pharmaceutical industry silica is a common additive, where it is used primarily as a flow in powdered foods, or to adsorb water in hygroscopic application. In pharmaceutical products, silica aids powder flow when tablets are formed.

Methyldibromo glutaronitrile (MDBGN) is a bromine-containing preservative that has been used in cosmetic and toiletry preparations as well as in some industrial products. A maximum concentration of 0.1% MDBGN in stay-on and rinse-off cosmetics was approved for use in the mid 1980’s and animal tests showed it to be a weak sensitiser compared to other preservatives used at the time. By the 1990’s it became a commonly used preservative, particularly in cosmetic and self-hygiene products. However, methyldibromo glutaronitrile was soon discovered to cause allergic contact dermatitis reactions in eczema patients. Rates of sensitisation to MDBGN increased from 0.7% in 1991 to 3.5% in 2000 in patch test studies from 16 European centres. In the United States, sensitivity rates were up to 11.7%. In 2005, the European Union, banned the use of MDBGN in stay-on products, and then later in 2007 also in rinse-off products. Recent data from Europe observed a significant decrease in positive patch test reactions since the ban of MDBGN.

Formaldehyde is a naturally occurring organic compound, and an important industrial precursor to many other materials and organic compounds. Formaldehyde solution (formalin) is used as a disinfectant. Formaldehyde vapors are toxic, upon entry formaldehyde reacts readily with macromolecules, including DNA to form DNA-protein and DNA-DNA cross-links.