Vaseline Eucalyptol Petroleum Jelly claimed, in accordance with “the best medical authorities,” to guard against the Spanish flu. “Snuff a little Vaseline Eucalyptol up the nostrils night and morning. It keeps the delicate membranes clean and healthy and is a protection against the influenza germ.” Its efficacy against the flu was questionable, but it sure cleared the sinuses. Read more about the deadly Spanish flu pandemic a century ago in On the Shore (1917-1925), a tale of conflict between generations in a Lower East Side immigrant family (see NOVELS).
