How to make Vapour Rub

Winter is on the way here and with it coughs and colds. Vapour rub is great for helping to unblock stuffed up noses and congestion. It's not difficult to make. 

Commercially produced vapour rub often uses petroleum jelly as the base ingredient, but this recipe uses three non-petroleum based ingredients.

Vapour Rub Recipe

To make this you will need:

• 5 tablespoons coconut oil
• 2 tablespoons cocoa butter
• 1 1/2 tablespoons beeswax (if you prefer a vegan alternative use candelilla wax)

Melt these ingredients over a low heat in a double boiler. Once the oil/wax mixture is liquid remove of the heat and add the following:

For children 6 months to 2 years:

• 10 drops eucalyptus essential oil (see note below)
• 10 drops tea tree essential oil
• 5 drops lavender essential oil
• 5 drops chamomile essential oil

For children aged over 2 years:

• 20 drops eucalyptus essential oil (see note below)
• 10 drops tea tree essential oil
• 10 drops rosemary essential oil
• 10 drops lavender essential oil
• 10 drops lemon essential oil

Mix well then pour into a clean glass or plastic pot. Leave the lid off until the mixture has set. Store in a cool dry place. Will last up to 12 months. 

Makes a little over 100g.

A note on using eucalyptus: If you're making this for a child please ensure that you use Eucalyptus Radiata essential oil.

I link up here.

photo credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/11850895@N07/4014611539">No273 13 Oct 2009 Sneeze</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">(license)</a>