Vicks VapoRub
Encyclopedia
Menthol
Menthol is an organic compound made synthetically or obtained from peppermint or other mint oils. It is a waxy, crystalline substance, clear or white in color, which is solid at room temperature and melts slightly above. The main form of menthol occurring in nature is -menthol, which is assigned...
ated topical
Topical
In medicine, a topical medication is applied to body surfaces such as the skin or mucous membranes such as the vagina, anus, throat, eyes and ears.Many topical medications are epicutaneous, meaning that they are applied directly to the skin...
cream
Cream (pharmaceutical)
A cream is a topical preparation usually for application to the skin. Creams for application to mucus membranes such as those of the rectum or vagina are also used. Creams may be considered pharmaceutical products as even cosmetic creams are based on techniques developed by pharmacy and...
manufactured by Vicks
Vicks
Vicks is a line of over-the-counter medications owned by the American company Procter & Gamble. Vicks manufactures NyQuil and its sister medication, DayQuil. The Vicks brand also produces Formula 44 cough medicines, cough drops, VapoRub, and a number of inhaled breathing treatments...
, intended to assist with minor medical conditions that temporarily impair breathing, including the common cold
Common cold
The common cold is a viral infectious disease of the upper respiratory system, caused primarily by rhinoviruses and coronaviruses. Common symptoms include a cough, sore throat, runny nose, and fever...
. It is applied to the chest, often immediately before sleeping. VapoRub is currently manufactured and packaged in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. In Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
it is sold under the name WICK VapoRub.
Safe use of VapoRub
VapoRub can be applied to the chest or throat (for congestion relief) or to sore muscles (to increase circulation). However, because it contains camphorCamphor
Camphor is a waxy, white or transparent solid with a strong, aromatic odor. It is a terpenoid with the chemical formula C10H16O. It is found in wood of the camphor laurel , a large evergreen tree found in Asia and also of Dryobalanops aromatica, a giant of the Bornean forests...
—a substance that can be toxic if swallowed or absorbed into the body—VapoRub should not be applied in or near the nostrils (see manufacturer's warnings).
Research published by Wake Forest University
Wake Forest University
Wake Forest University is a private, coeducational university in the U.S. state of North Carolina, founded in 1834. The university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina, the state capital. The Reynolda Campus, the university's main campus, is...
Baptist Medical Center in the January 2009 issue of Chest, the peer-reviewed journal of the American College of Chest Physicians, suggests that Vicks VapoRub compound used to relieve symptoms of cough and congestion, may instead create respiratory distress in infants and small children. The study reports that the product may stimulate mucus production and airway inflammation, which can have severe effects on the breathing of infants and young children because of the small size of their airways. (see http://www.chestjournal.org).
History
Lunsford RichardsonLunsford Richardson
Lunsford Richardson , 1854-1919, was a U.S. pharmacist from Selma, North Carolina, and the founder of Vick Chemical Company . He died August 20, 1919.-Early life:...
developed the formula in 1905 when he created a salve for his children, after traveling to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. He named the product for his brother-in-law Dr. Joshua Vick.
A Penn State study showed Vicks VapoRub to be effective for helping cough and congestion, and helping children and even adults sleep. Vicks VapoRub is effective for helping cough because it contains menthol which has potent antitussive properties. Recent studies also proved that menthol has antifungal properties, so it can be used as onychomycosis treatment.
Ingredients
Active Ingredients:Label reads: Special Vick medications (camphor, menthol, spirits of turpentine, eucalyptus oil, cedar leaf oil, myristica oil, thymol)...compounded by the original Vick process. VICK CHEMICAL COMPANY Div of Richardson-Merrell Inc, New York, NY 10017
- CamphorCamphorCamphor is a waxy, white or transparent solid with a strong, aromatic odor. It is a terpenoid with the chemical formula C10H16O. It is found in wood of the camphor laurel , a large evergreen tree found in Asia and also of Dryobalanops aromatica, a giant of the Bornean forests...
4.8% (Cough suppressant and topical analgesic) - EucalyptolEucalyptolEucalyptol is a natural organic compound which is a colorless liquid. It is a cyclic ether and a monoterpenoid.Eucalyptol is also known by a variety of synonyms: 1,8-cineol, 1,8-cineole, limonene oxide, cajeputol, 1,8-epoxy-p-menthane, 1,8-oxido-p-menthane, eucalyptol, eucalyptole,...
1.2% (Cough suppressant) - MentholMentholMenthol is an organic compound made synthetically or obtained from peppermint or other mint oils. It is a waxy, crystalline substance, clear or white in color, which is solid at room temperature and melts slightly above. The main form of menthol occurring in nature is -menthol, which is assigned...
2.6% (Cough suppressant and topical analgesic)
Inactive Ingredients
- Cedarleaf oilThuja occidentalisThuja occidentalis is an evergreen coniferous tree, in the cypress family Cupressaceae, which is widely cultivated for use as an ornamental plant known as American Arbor Vitae. The endemic occurrence of this species is a northeastern distribution in North America...
- Nutmeg oil
- special PetrolatumPetroleum jellyPetroleum jelly, petrolatum, white petrolatum or soft paraffin, CAS number 8009-03-8, is a semi-solid mixture of hydrocarbons , originally promoted as a topical ointment for its healing properties...
- Thymol
- Turpentine oil
See also
- AromatherapyAromatherapyAromatherapy is a form of alternative medicine that uses volatile plant materials, known as essential oils, and other aromatic compounds for the purpose of altering a person's mind, mood, cognitive function or health....
- Chest rubChest rubChest rub, cold rub, or vapor/vapour rub is a mentholated topical petrolatum-based gel intended to assist with minor medical conditions that temporarily impair breathing, including the common cold...
- Essential oilEssential oilAn essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile aroma compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils or aetherolea, or simply as the "oil of" the plant from which they were extracted, such as oil of clove...
- Levomethamphetamine (Vicks Inhaler)
- MentholatumMentholatumThe Mentholatum Company, Inc., founded in 1889 by Albert Alexander Hyde, is a maker of non-prescription health care products. It was bought out by Rohto Pharmaceutical Co., a Japanese health care company, in 1988...
- Tiger BalmTiger BalmTiger Balm is the trade name for a heat rub manufactured and distributed by Haw Par Healthcare in Singapore.- History :It was originally developed in the 1870s by a herbalist, Aw Chu Kin, in Rangoon, Burma, who asked his sons Aw Boon Haw and Aw Boon Par on his deathbed to perfect the...