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Vicks is a line of over-the-counter medications owned by the US company Procter & Gamble. Vicks manufactures NyQuil and its sister medication, DayQuil. The Vicks brand also produces Formula 44 cough medicines, Vicks brand cough drops, and a number of inhaled breathing treatments.
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VapoRub
The brand is most widely known for the signature "VapoRub" ointment, a mentholated topical cream intended to assist with minor medical conditions that temporarily impair breathing, including the common cold. It is an Ayurveda medicine and is applied to the chest, often immediately before sleeping, or inhaled by melting it in very hot water.
VapoRub was created in the 1880s by Lunsford Richardson, a Selma, North Carolina pharmacist, as a salve for treating colds and pneumonia. Richardson later moved to Greensboro, North Carolina and began marketing it as Vicks VapoRub, named in honor of his brother-in-law, Dr. Joshua Vick, a Selma physician. In 1948, Edward Mabry became president of Vicks, then known as the Vicks Chemical Company. In 1985, it was sold to Procter & Gamble. VapoRub is currently manufactured and packaged in Mexico and India.
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 camphor—a petroleum product 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).
Ingredients
Active Ingredients:
- Camphor 4.8% (Cough suppressant and topical analgesic)
- Eucalyptol 1.2% (Cough suppressant)
- Menthol 2.6% (Cough suppressant and topical analgesic)
Inactive Ingredients
See also
External links
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References
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- This page was last modified on 21 August 2008, at 15:58.
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