What Is The Life Expectancy of Someone With COPD?

Vaseline Inventor Ate Spoonful Of Petroleum Jelly Every Day?

Claim:

Robert A. Chesebrough, the inventor of Vaseline, ate a spoonful of petroleum jelly every day until he died at age 96, and once cured himself of pleurisy by having a nurse cover his body in Vaseline.

What's True

Shortly before petroleum jelly inventor Chesebrough died in 1933, at the age of 96, he publicly claimed to ingest "more than a teaspoon" of Vaseline daily. However ...

What's Undetermined

We were unable to confirm the claim that he once cured himself of a case of pleurisy by having a nurse cover his body in Vaseline.

On June 28, 2024, a Reddit user made a post on the r/Damnthatsinteresting subreddit claiming that the inventor of Vaseline, Robert A. Chesebrough, ate a spoonful of petroleum jelly every day until he died at age 96 and once cured himself of pleurisy, an inflammatory condition of the tissues that line the lungs and chest cavity, by having a nurse cover his body in Vaseline.

The post had received around 68,000 upvotes and 2,000 comments at the time of this writing.

Several hours after the r/Damnthatsinteresting post appeared, the same claims were repeated in a similar post by X user @historyinmemes. That post had been liked around 23,000 times and reposted around 3,800 times as of this writing.

Snopes was able to confirm the first part of the claim thanks to a letter he wrote to the Spring Lake (New Jersey) Gazette six months before his death. In it, Chesebrough, then 96, indeed attributed his longevity to eating "more than a teaspoon daily" of Vaseline. The relevant section of the letter can be seen in the Newspapers.Com clip below.

Although the part of the claim that concerns Chesebrough's daily ingestion of Vaseline is true, we have so far been unable to locate any primary or authoritative secondary sources corroborating the part of claim concerning Chesebrough allegedly treating a case of pleurisy by having a nurse cover his body in petroleum jelly. For this reason, we rate the claim as "Mixture." We will update our rating if strong evidence for this second part of the claim surfaces.

As outlined on the official Vaseline website's "Our History" page, Chesebrough developed the idea for petroleum jelly, the generic name for the substance later marketed as Vaseline, when oil drilling began in Titusville, Pennsylvania, in 1859. A chemist with previous experience producing kerosene from whale oil, Chesebrough took special interest in a byproduct of petroleum called rod wax, which Titusville oil workers had begun using as a salve for cuts and burns.

In 1865, Chesebrough filed the first of several patents for methods for purifying petroleum into petroleum jelly, which he began selling under the brand name Vaseline in 1870.

The earliest publication to contain the full claim investigated here was an article titled "Mr. Chesebrough's Wonder Jelly," which was published in Coronet magazine in November 1953. Without any mention of how he found this information, the article's author, Mort Weisinger, wrote,

So great a faith did Robert Chesebrough have in the therapeutic value of his product that he swallowed a spoonful every day of his life ... In his late fifties, ill with pleurisy, he made his nurse anoint him with the substance from head to toe — and promptly recovered. Chesebrough died in 1933 at 96. On his deathbed, he boasted that he owed his longevity to his habit of taking a daily dose of the jelly. 

Over the following decades, these claims appeared in whole or in part in popular books, newspaper articles, blog posts, in "Ripley's Believe it or Not," and even on the Britannica website. However, none of these appearances pointed readers toward an authoritative or primary source for the claim.

This was the case even for a mention of the claim that appeared in a 2017 issue of JAMA Dermatology, an academic journal published by the American Medical Association. In their citation for the claim, the authors of the piece pointed toward "Panati's Extraordinary Origins of Ordinary Things," a book first published in 1987, which does include the claim but provides no source for it in the "References" section at the end of the book.

Snopes was able to track down the newspaper article verifying the part of the claim concerning Chesebrough's daily consumption of Vaseline by scouring obituaries published after the inventor died in September 1933. One obituary, published in the Spring Lake Gazette, noted that Chesebrough, a Spring Lake resident at the time of his death, had "frequently" contributed articles and letters to that paper.

A survey of Chesebrough's contributions to the Spring Lake Gazette turned up the aforementioned March 2, 1933, letter in which Chesebrough both described his daily Vaseline ingestion and explicitly claimed he believed it was the source of his longevity. Chesebrough died in September of the same year, several months after the letter was published.

None of Chesebrough's letters to this publication contained any mention of Chesebrough curing himself from an attack of pleurisy by having a nurse slather him in petroleum jelly, and as of this writing we have not been able to locate any other sources published during or soon after Chesebrough's lifetime that might corroborate this part of the claim. For this reason, we have rated the overall claim as it is presented in social media posts as "Mixture."

Sources

"150 Years of Vaseline® History." Vaseline, https://www.Vaseline.Com/in/en/who-we-are/our-history.Html. Accessed 1 July 2024.

Gray, Christopher. "Streetscapes/The Chesebrough House, 71st Street and Madison Avenue; 1911 Home Built by the Man Who Invented Vaseline." The New York Times, 12 Oct. 2003. NYTimes.Com, https://www.Nytimes.Com/2003/10/12/realestate/streetscapes-chesebrough-house-71st-street-madison-avenue-1911-home-built-man.Html.

Jayakumar, Kishore L., and Robert G. Micheletti. "Robert Chesebrough and the Dermatologic Wonder of Petroleum Jelly." JAMA Dermatology, vol. 153, no. 11, Nov. 2017, p. 1157. Silverchair, https://doi.Org/10.1001/jamadermatol.2017.3544.

One Good Fact about Eating VaselineBritannica. Https://www.Britannica.Com/one-good-fact/what-petroleum-product-was-regularly-eaten-by-its-creator. Accessed 1 July 2024.

Panati, Charles. Panati's Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things. Book Sales, 2016.

SearchRipley's Believe It or Not!Aquariums, Attractions, Museums. Https://www.Ripleys.Com/search?Q=chesebrough. Accessed 1 July 2024.

"Spring Lake Gazette Archive." Newspapers.Com, 2 Mar. 1933, https://www.Newspapers.Com/paper/spring-lake-gazette/11695/.

"Story of Vaseline." Damn Interesting, https://www.Damninteresting.Com/curio/story-of-vaseline/. Accessed 1 July 2024.

Weisinger, Mort. "Mr. Chesebrough's Wonder Jelly." Coronet 1953-11: Vol 35 Iss 1. Hearst Brand Development, 1953. Internet Archive, http://archive.Org/details/sim_coronet_1953-11_35_1_0.

Wiegand, Steve. U.S. History For Dummies. John Wiley & Sons, 2009.

What Does It Mean When Your Left Lung Hurts?

The lungs have few pain receptors, so pain in the lungs usually starts elsewhere in the body. Possible causes of left-side lung or chest pain when breathing in include costochondritis and pneumothorax.

However, some lung-related conditions can result in pain in the left lung.

The chest contains several vital organs, including the heart and lungs. Because of this, it is understandable why someone experiencing pain in this area may worry about what is causing it.

This article examines some potential causes of lung pain and what people can do if they experience this symptom.

The following include some of the more common causes of lung pain, including left lung pain:

Asthma

Asthma is a condition that causes airway inflammation and lung irritability, which makes people more prone to wheezing and shortness of breath.

Chronic coughing and wheezing relating to asthma can cause feelings of chest tightness.

Typically, this will make a person's chest tight on both sides, not just the left.

Costochondritis

Costochondritis refers to inflammation of the connective tissue that joins a person's ribs to their breastbone. Costochondritis can cause pain that feels like chest pain, which can occur on one side.

Hyperventilation

Hyperventilation, or rapid breathing, can result from illness or panic attacks. This condition can affect the typical balance between carbon dioxide and oxygen inside the body.

One of the primary symptoms of hyperventilation is chest tightness.

A person may also experience dizziness, headache, and trouble concentrating.

Lung cancer

Lung cancer does not usually cause symptoms at first. As lung cancer spreads, a person may notice symptoms such as a chronic cough, shortness of breath, and feeling tired or weak for no known reason.

Pneumothorax

Pneumothorax is a portion or all of a lung collapsing. This can cause sudden and significant chest pain on the affected side of the chest.

A pneumothorax can occur suddenly or after an injury or illness.

Pleural effusion

Pleural effusion is a condition where excess fluid builds up inside the lining of the lung, known as the pleural space. This buildup can cause difficulty breathing and discomfort on the affected side.

Pleurisy

This condition occurs when the two membranes of the chest wall become inflamed. When they rub against each other, pain and shortness of breath can occur.

When a person has pleurisy, a doctor will perform various tests to find the cause. The cause could be a viral infection, trauma, or lupus, an autoimmune disorder that attacks a person's tissues and organs.

Pneumonia

Pneumonia is a severe respiratory infection that can affect one or both lungs. If pneumonia is on the affected side, a person may experience pain in that lung.

Additional symptoms might include a cough, fever, chills, and shortness of breath.

Pulmonary embolism

A pulmonary embolism (PE) is a blood clot or clots in the lungs' arteries. A PE can occur after a person has had surgery or been sedentary for some time.

While some causes of left-sided chest pain may be mild, others can cause concern. Some signs that left lung pain could be a medical emergency include:

chest pain, particularly chest pain that radiates down the left arm

coughing up blood

lips or fingernails that are bluish in tint, which can indicate that a person is not getting enough oxygen

shortness of breath or difficulty breathing

a temperature higher than 105°F (40.5°C)

If someone experiences these or other symptoms, they need to call 911 or have someone drive them to the emergency room immediately.

Signs of lung cancer

Lung cancer signs can include:

long-term changes to the sound and tone of a person's voice, such as hoarseness

chronic infection, such as bronchitis or pneumonia, that will not go away

a cough that does not get better over time

coughing up rust-colored or blood-tinged mucus

unexplained feelings of fatigue and weakness

wheezing with no known underlying cause

If someone experiences these symptoms, they need to consult a doctor.

Learn more about lung cancer signs.

Whether the pain relates to the lung or feels like it is, a person needs to consult their doctor if it interferes with their everyday life.

This is especially true if the pain is worsening instead of improving.

A doctor will diagnose the cause of left chest pain by taking a medical history and physical examination.

The doctor will ask questions about what makes the pain worse, what makes it better, and when the pain began. They will also listen to the lungs with a stethoscope.

Imaging tests

A doctor may recommend initial imaging studies, such as a chest X-ray, to identify potential issues relating to the lungs. If this X-ray does not reveal any problems, but the doctor suspects an underlying problem, they may recommend further testing.

Further tests could include an MRI or CT scan. These imaging studies can provide different, high quality pictures of the lungs to aid in a diagnosis.

Blood tests

Other testing modes may include a complete blood count to identify a person's number of white blood cells. A high white blood cell count could indicate that an infection is present in the body.

Another test a doctor might use is a cardiac enzyme panel. This determines whether pain in the left lung is, in fact, chest pain relating to a heart attack or another heart problem.

Doctors may also recommend individual tests according to a person's symptoms and left lung pain.

Resting and taking over-the-counter anti-inflammatory medications, such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen, can help if the cause relates to the muscles around the lung.

Treatments for other possible causes of left lung pain can vary. For example, if a person has a collapsed left lung, a doctor may insert a small tube between the ribs and into the space around the lung to re-inflate it.

Doctors may prescribe antibiotics to treat respiratory-related infections due to bacteria.

The most important thing to do is consult a doctor who can begin the diagnostic process so treatment can begin as soon as possible.

Here are some answers to common questions about left lung pain.

What does it mean when your left lung hurts?

Left lung pain can result from many issues, such as asthma, inflammation, injury, or an underlying condition.

How do I know if I have lung pain or muscle pain?

Lung pain may link to more serious underlying conditions and have accompanying symptoms such as coughing blood or difficulty breathing. A person can speak with a healthcare professional to get an accurate diagnosis.

How serious is pleurisy?

Pleurisy is usually easy to treat and gets better in a matter of days. However, it can lead to more serious conditions such as pneumonia.

What can feel like lung pain?

Lung pain can also feel like chest muscle pain. Look out for accompanying symptoms.

Left lung pain has many potential causes. It has links to nearby organs, such as the heart and stomach.

Anyone experiencing left lung pain needs to seek prompt medical attention to ensure that the pain is not a symptom of a serious underlying condition.

Quiz On Pleurisy (Advanced)

Pleurisy (Also called Pleuritis) is an inflammation of the pleura, a moist double layered membrane surrounding the lungs and lining the rib cage. The inflamed pleural layers rub against each other when lungs are expanded to breath air. This makes the breathing extremely painful; the chest pain is also known as pleuritic chest pain. Pleurisy is also associated sometimes with other condition known as pleural effusion, where excess fluid is filled up in the area between the membrane's layers.

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