Vicks VapoRub has long been used by generations of Black folks as a miracle-working cure-all for virtually any type of ailment. But this cold and flu season, Vicks is stepping in and telling the diaspora that we’re using the product wrong, sending the internet into a tizzy.
For over a century, Vicks VapoRub has been the quintessential cold remedy in Black households. Parents have slathered it all over sick kids’ chests, backs, feet, ears, necks and faces and smeared it in, under and around their noses. Others have stirred a spoonful of VapoRub in a pot of hot water to inhale the steam. Some have even admitted to being instructed to swallow VapoRub or drink it in tea. No matter the method, VapoRub’s signature minty menthol aroma seems to reset the sinuses and clear congestion with every whiff.
But representatives of Vicks have warned that there is, in fact, a right way to use the beloved ointment. According to the P&G-owned company’s advice, it shouldn’t be applied near the nose, mouth or eyes. They also advise against heating the ointment or adding it to hot water, which “may cause splattering and result in burns.”
It all clicked for Jolene, a Black lifestyle TikToker, late last month after she decided to check the label on her jar of Vicks VapoRub.
“And to all my Caribbean folks — did y’all know we aren’t supposed to apply this anywhere near our nostrils or mouths?” she said, holding the container in one hand. “I’m literally just now reading the label and seeing that it says this, but we’ve been doing this for years. … The things you learn.”
But commenters under Jolene’s video, which racked up over 2.5 million views, were not ready to change their ways.
As one person put it, VapoRub is the “medical duct tape of the Caribbean.” It seemed the label wasn’t enough to stop tradition.
“Vicks don’t know how to use their products,” another person wrote. The comment section was filled with GIFs of people shooing away Vicks or covering their ears. “We didn’t DIE, did we? No harm done,” wrote someone else.
A day later on Instagram, another Black content creator named Noushky filmed a funny video teasing Caribbean folks for inhaling Vicks after rubbing it beneath their noses. The clip, which has over 1.6 million views, caught the attention of someone running Vicks’ Instagram account. In a follow-up video, Noushky shared that that person gave her quite the scolding in her direct messages.
“We appreciate your enthusiasm for Vicks. However, we want our products to be used safely. As mentioned on the label, VapoRub should be applied only to the chest and throat to temporarily relieve cough due to minor throat and bronchial irritation associated with the common cold, and on muscles and joints to temporarily relieve minor aches and pains of muscles and joints,” the message read. “Since VapoRub is an oil-based medication, it shouldn’t be used under or inside the nose, inside the mouth or swallowed. Any oil-based product can get into the lungs if used improperly.”
“Vicks said, ‘you ain’t about to play with my money.’ That’s all I heard,” Noushky said before busting out laughing.
Despite the company’s message, Black folks seem more determined than ever to use Vicks VapoRub any way they please.
“Vicks don’t know how to use Vicks,” wrote someone on Instagram.
