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Claim: Application of Vicks VapoRub to the soles of the feet effectively counters nighttime cough.
Example: [Collected via e-mail, 2007]
Origins: In a statement e-mailed to snopes.com in May 2007, the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) denied having extolled the application of Vicks VapoRub to a child's feet as an effective counter to nighttime cough:
The National Research Council of Canada (also referred to as NRC) has recently learned of an email that is circulating which claims we have proven that Vicks VapoRub can be applied to the feet to cure a persistent cough. We would like to take this opportunity to dispel this suggestion.
However, while the NRC has neither researched the claim that slathering VapoRub on a child's feet will alleviate nighttime cough nor endorses the practice, that particular home cure has been proffered by people in the health industry prior to this March 2007 The e-mail suggests that NRC has conducted research comparing the effectiveness of prescription cough medicines in children to alternative therapies like acupressure. However, our databases indicate that no such studies involving Vicks VapoRub have been conducted at NRC. It is rare for NRC to engage in research into alternate applications of medications. Home remedies, homeopathy and alternative therapies for illnesses are popular areas of interest for Canadians, especially in recent years. Although NRC conducts some research in these areas (NRC conducts research on nutraceuticals and therapeutic attributes of plants), our focus is more frequently on medical and pharmaceutical treatments for illness and disease. Some of our best-known advancements have been in this field, including: the first practical motorized wheelchair, the first artificial pacemaker, the Joe and Teresa Graedon of "The People's Pharmacy," a health advice feature that is both a syndicated newspaper column and a weekly show on National Public Radio, included mention of this potential use of the salve in their 2002 "Guide to Unique Uses for Vicks." Expanding on the 2002 suggestion that "Easing chest congestion is standard, of course, but have you considered applying it to the soles of the feet for a persistent nighttime cough?" in February 2007 they wrote, "We also suggest putting Vicks VapoRub on the soles of the feet for a nighttime cough. Put on socks to protect the Vicks' usage instructions state nothing about slathering their VapoRub product on one's feet; instead, they instruct those looking for temporary relief of cough due to common cold to rub a thick layer of the salve onto their chests and throats. However, Vicks does address another VapoRub rumor that postulates using the product to combat toenail and fingernail fungus (an alternate use of the product that has been ballyhooed by a number of folks for years, including author It's too soon to say whether or not there is anything to the crazy-sounding notion of spreading Vicks VapoRub on the soles of feet as a way of putting the boots to a troublesome cough. According to our readers, however, a great many parents and grandparents have been using this medicant for decades, with a fair number of them endorsing it. Ergo, while this remedy might prove to be out-and-out quackery, it may also end up in the same category as the belief that sleeping with a bar of soap will cure nighttime leg cramps: that while there's no scientific evidence of the practice's working (or indeed any logical reason for why it might), a great many folks may find personal reasons to swear by it anyway. Barbara "soap operant" Mikkelson Last updated: 28 May 2007 Urban Legends Reference Pages © 1995-2008 by snopes.com. This material may not be reproduced without permission. snopes and the snopes.com logo are registered service marks of snopes.com.  Sources:
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