Humans = Ferrets

On my mommy sanity board a question was asked about what could be done for a toddler who had a horrible cough. Being as said toddler is not quite a year and a half it limits the use of medicines. I wrote that I vaguely remembered reading something about rubbing Vicks Vapo Rub on the soles of your feet to help stop coughing.

Wait you say – Vicks to stop coughing…sure it helps you breath better but stop coughing…hey I am pretty skeptical myself – but there are weird things out there – for example did you know if you get a mild burn – throw some soy sauce on it…

So I turned to Google and found that the whole Vicks on the soles of the feet started as a chain e-mail (surprise) and there is no scientific proof it works…Some people have stated they have tried it and it has worked for them…Skeptics point out that the odor is strong so you may get a desired effect of reduced coughing no matter where on your body you slather it.

Then I came across this…

Myth: Slathering Vicks VapoRub on the soles of your feet will silence a cough
February 9, 2009 · No Comments

Reality: This “prescription” maintains a healthy life on the Internet. According to true believers, applying the cold remedy to the feet works 100 percent of the time. Not a chance, says Dr. Bruce Rubin of Wake Forest University, part of a research team that recently tested VapoRub on ferrets, which have airways similar to those of humans.

“I don’t know how Vicks on the feet would help a cold,” Rubin said. “I do know that if your nose runs and your feet smell, you are probably built upside down.” Chicken soup and TLC work better, Rubin notes.

My one question is this...they debunk the idea by the use of ferrets...FERRETS...question is what did they give them to make the little ferrets cough in the first place and then how do they know that maybe, just maybe the ferrets got some relief from having their paws slathered with Vicks.

Furthermore, how do you keep the Ferrets from licking the Vicks off…for some reason I have this image of poor little Ferrets strapped down spread eagle on little gurneys – each of their little paws in some sort of leather restraint…or do they just put a little “Silence of the Lambs” face mask on the Ferrets and let them thump around with Vick covered paws? {Note to self: Check U-Tube for video of Vick slathered Ferrets}

So does it work – who knows…next time I or someone in my family gets a bad cough I will probably try it - if nothing else, think of how soft your feet will be in the morning.


BONUS KID CONVERSATION

TW: Did you have a lot of boyfriends before Daddy
ME: Some not a lot
TW: Did you kiss all of them
ME: Yes
TW: Wow – so that means I can kiss a lot of boys before I get married too.

That in turn led into how old should one be before you kiss a boy…I asked PWG since TW, much to my chagrin, has already experienced her first kiss with a boy (and has been told if she does so again she might have her lips sewn together and she will have to drink her food through a straw) – and the response was…

PWG: 9th grade – unless he is really really cute
ME: {silence}

I am so not ready for the next phase of girlhood…