propylene glycol, acetone and the various parabens might be triggers for a wide range of skin problems

Are Vaseline and other petroleum products environmentally sound? | Leo Hickman | Environment | guardian.co.uk

I find Vaseline and similar petroleum products, including many sold for use in eczema, make for good, cheap moisturisers. But are these products environmentally sound? If I thought using them was contributing to excessive use of oil reserves I would try to find alternatives. What do you think?

Thanks to the wonderful powers bestowed upon us by the mighty internet we can readily read the original patent application for Vaseline filed at the United States Patent Office by its inventor Robert Chesebrough in 1872. In the document, Chesebrough describes for himself how he derived his self-titled "Vaseline":

The substance from which Vaseline is made is the residium of petroleum left in the still after the greater part of the petroleum has been distilled off … Vaseline is the product of the filtration of the said residiums through bone-black [bone char], and varies in colour as it comes from the filter.

Chesebrough goes on to say that Vaseline is "especially useful" for "oiling all kinds of leather", it is a good lubricator, and that the finest grade of Vaseline can be used as a "pomade for the hair". He adds that it is an "excellent substance for glycerine-cream for chapped hands, etc". Over a century later not much has changed, with petroleum jelly – first known to riggers in its black, unrefined state as "rod wax" – still as popular as the days when Chesebrough was said to have touted his wonder cure across the US by burning his own skin with acid and then rubbing on Vaseline to prove to onlookers just how effective it could be as a healant.

As a minor by-product of the oil industry, I think there's little, if any, need to worry about global Vaseline use plunging us faster towards the commonly predicted "oil crunch". It is just one of literally thousands of products that are derived from the refining of crude oil. Our homes would look fairly sparse if were to rid ourselves of the plastics, detergents, cosmetics etc that rely so heavily on petrochemicals and other refinery by-products for their manufacture. That's not to say such a dependence is a wise thing – it most likely isn't if the predicted crunchy peak occurs to our oil supplies. But I think, as do most of the commentators below, that worrying about the overuse of Vaseline, now owned by Unilever, is very low down our the list of concerns.

But I sense from your question, Jane, that you are equally, if not more, concerned about the health implications of applying petroleum jelly to your skin. There is, of course, a fast growing corner of the cosmetics market that meets the demands of those who seek products free from any petrochemicals. Ingredients such as propylene glycol, acetone and the various parabens are being increasingly shunned by consumers fearing they might be triggers for a wide range of problems, including eczema. Some even fear they might be carcinogens. Manufacturers now go out of their way to stress that their products are safe to use and all must meet strict regulatory standards, but the doubts among some consumers still persist. The precautionary principle is now being commonly applied when it comes to rubbing a product on one's skin. We know that our epidermis absorbs these products and that they can end up entering our blood stream, so why, some say, take the risk?