Petrolatum was first isolated and distilled by chemist, Robert Chesebrough, in 1859. It makes an excellent wound care treatment because it does not burn and bacteria struggle to grow in its, completely anhydrous (water free) environment.
Some have raised concerns that peteolatum might contain carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) since it is distilled from petroleum oil. Rest assured that there have been no signs of cancer risk in over 150 years of petrolatum use. Further, the testing of petrolatum in Canada has shown PAH concentrations of less than 0.00001% and additional studies have demonstrated that hydrocarbon-based emollients are not absorbed through the skin. They do make excellent “vehicles” for topical medicine delivery, however.
Practical Uses
Petrolatum has an extremely low risk of causing allergy and it does not burn when applied to the skin. It is a helpful and inexpensive moisturizer (for people over 1 year of age) due to its ability to limit water loss through the skin.
Numerous studies have shown that it improves healing when applied to wounds. Various topical antibiotics have been added to petrolatum (neomycin, polymixin B, bacitracin) over the years and sold commercially. Studies show that these additions merely increase irritation and the risk of allergy without improving healing outcomes above the results of petrolatum alone. That is why most dermatologists recommend the application of pure petroleum jelly on non-infected wounds.
Lately, peteolatum has been promoted in the process of “slugging” (liberal application to the face) on social media. Though there is little evidence to show that it clogs pores (aka is “comedogenic”), I do not recommend slugging for any person who gets acne or seborrheic dermatitis (aka dandruff). I do happen to use it, myself, on my bone-dry eyelids, neck, hands, arms, and legs at bedtime for moisture recovery.
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