What is the hoopla over petroleum jelly? Is it bad for me?
Lets look at what petroleum jelly is: Petroleum jelly (also called soft paraffin) is a mixture of hydrocarbons (something naturally occurring in crude oil) which is semisolid at room temperature, and it is also odorless. It is a by-product of the petroleum industry. It generally clogs the drills on oil rigs. NOTE: it does NOT contain gasoline as the urban legend (and some anti-petrol. folks) will tell you. It does contain traces of octane which is one of the hydrocarbons from crude oil, but they dont actually pour in gasoline. In the late 19th century an oil rig worker discovered that rubbing petroleum jelly on cuts and burns helped them to heal (technically it acts as a barrier agent and keeps stuff OUT of cuts and burns, it doesnt HEAL them). It gained popularity as a cure all when soldiers were issued jars of Vaseline in their first aid kits in WWII. Its been in home medicine cabinets since. To answer the second question first, petroleum jelly is not bad for you when properly used.
