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Petroleum Jelly In The Nose Can Be Dangerous

Q. I read in your column that putting petroleum jelly in the nose could cause chemical pneumonia. I have been putting Vaseline in my nose every day for years to prevent nosebleeds.

Now I'm worried. I do have a chronic cough that I always attributed to allergies.

A. Petroleum jelly is “for external use only,” according to the label. The makers of Vicks VapoRub go so far as to say, “Do not use in nostrils.”

We found one case in the medical literature of “exogenous lipoid pneumonia” caused by habitually putting petroleum jelly in the nose (Chest, March, 1994). Although this condition is considered rare, we would encourage you to stop this practice and discuss your chronic cough with a lung expert.

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About the Author
Joe Graedon is a pharmacologist who has dedicated his career to making drug information understandable to consumers. His best-selling book, The People’s Pharmacy, was published in 1976 and led to a syndicated newspaper column, syndicated public radio show and web site. In 2006, Long Island University awarded him an honorary doctorate as “one of the country's leading drug experts for the consumer.”.
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