Homemade Vapor Rub for Cough and Cold

Homemade Herbal Salve

I used to use Vicks vapor rub when I caught a cold or cough for as long as I remember. I rubbed it on my neck and back to warm my body and relieve congestion. And I would rub it all over my neck and cover it with a small handkerchief to keep the warmth in when I suffered a severe cough. It worked well and I am glad for it. But as I'm becoming more familiar with natural alternative remedies, I find that I can make my own vapor rub that is natural and works just as wonderfully without worrying about preservatives and questionable ingredients, especially when I need to apply it to my baby. I've been mixing just eucalyptus essential oils and sweet almond oil for relief, but at times it is not convenient to bring the whole bottle of essential oil and carrier oil when we're out and about. And I've spilled eucalyptus essential oil all over the floor when I tried to mix it with the carrier oil (although afterwards the whole room smelled like eucalyptus the whole night and it helped me decongest!). To solve this problem, I experimented making a homemade eucalyptus "vapor rub" in the form of a salve. It is simple, safer, and also cheaper to make.

Ingredients

2.5 parts coconut oil
1 part beeswax
Eucalyptus essential oil

Directions

Melt beeswax and coconut oil in a pan and add the essential oil. Pour into a glass container or tin. I like to re-use the 2.5 oz or 4 oz baby food jars to store the salve. The salve will harden in fifteen minutes or so. If you find the consistency too hard, scoop it back to the pan, re-melt and add more coconut oil. If it's too soft, re-melt and add more beeswax. The more eucalyptus essential oil you put in, the stronger the strength of the oil. Find what works best for you. One of these days I want to try to add peppermint essential oil to the salve for its ability to relieve headache, fever, and muscle-ache. I re-use glass baby food jars for this.

Beeswax pellets and coconut oil.

The oil becomes yellowish after the beeswax has melted.

I pour into baby food glass jars and wait for it to harden.

I apply this salve on my temple for headaches, under my nose to relieve nasal congestion and on my neck, chest, and back to relieve chest congestion.

Read here for guidelines on using essential oils.

What essential oils have you used that work well to relieve cough, cold, and headaches?

Disclaimer: Although I am passionate about healthy and natural living, I am not a certified or a licensed medical practitioner who can counsel anyone in medical issues and cannot be held responsible for any decision you make regarding your health. What I am sharing are what I have learned and applied to my family but may not necessarily work for yours. My only hope is that this blog may encourage you to learn more about healthy and natural living which will hopefully help you as you make decisions for your own family.


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