Products like Vicks are not recommended for children under three years of age, as their strong, pungent vapours may irritate or obstruct an infant’s sensitive airways.
Published Jul 16, 2025 | 7:52 PM ⚊ Updated Jul 16, 2025 | 9:38 PM
Experts say that while there could be underlying medical causes in such cases, some home remedies themselves can be harmful.
Synopsis: An eight-month-old infant from Chennai died on Wednesday after her family reportedly applied a mixture of Vicks and camphor to her nose to treat a cold. She developed breathing difficulties and was taken to Egmore Children’s Hospital, where she later died. The incident has raised concerns about the dangers of home remedies, with experts warning that adult medications are not recommended for infants due to how their bodies react.
An eight-month-old infant in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, died on Wednesday, 16 July, after her family reportedly applied a mix of Vicks – a popular mentholated cold ointment – and camphor on her nose on 13 July to ease a severe cold.
Soon after, the infant, from Vallavan Nagar, began experiencing breathing difficulties and was rushed to Egmore Children’s Hospital, where she later died.
Police have registered a case and are awaiting the post-mortem report to confirm whether the death was caused by the cold itself or by respiratory distress triggered by the mixture.
The incident has raised serious concerns, as the use of such home remedies is still fairly common despite repeated warnings from doctors and product labels about the risks they pose to infants.
The case highlights how easily well-intentioned but misinformed practices, particularly with very young children, can lead to tragic outcomes – raising questions about awareness and safe childcare practices in the community.
Experts say that while there could be underlying medical causes in such cases, some home remedies themselves can be harmful.
Products like Vicks are not recommended for children under three years of age, as their strong, pungent vapours may irritate or obstruct an infant’s sensitive airways.
Dr Vijay, a paediatrician from ESI Hospital, said that while these products may offer some “symptomatic relief,” they are not suitable for infants. He added that deaths directly linked to camphor or Vicks are very rare.
“Death is unusual with this camphor or Vicks actually,” he said, adding that such a case would more likely involve “underlying causes like chronic lung disease or some acute lung condition that might have gone unnoticed.”
He further explained that in very young children, particularly infants, sudden deaths are most often related to breathing issues during severe infections.
“The most common cause of sudden death will be when kids are having upper or lower respiratory attacks,” he said.
In those situations, food or milk can sometimes be inhaled into the lungs during vomiting – a process known as pulmonary aspiration – which may further cause respiratory failure.
Dr Sameer Bansal, Senior Consultant Pulmonologist at Vaayu Chest and Sleep Specialists and Apollo Hospital, Bengaluru, agreed.
“It mostly seems like the baby had some respiratory issue rather than the vapour rub causing it. Rarely, it can cause an allergic reaction as a side effect, but I doubt it,” he told South First.
“Ignoring symptoms and applying home remedies – especially in babies who produce a lot of phlegm – can itself lead to choking due to the mucus inside.”
Meanwhile, Dr Vijay highlighted that even the Vicks packet itself clearly states it should not be used for children under three years of age.
The reason, he said, is that “the pungent smell will be there, and that will be irritating for the kids.” Such strong vapours can irritate an infant’s sensitive airways.
“We usually won’t use these inhalational vapours for kids actually,” he said. “We never prefer these vapours or camphors or Vicks vapours like this for kids. Those are not at all recommended,” he added.
Discussing safer approaches to treating colds in infants, Dr Vijay stressed that parents should avoid over-the-counter medicines and home remedies.
“Never use over-the-counter medication, never use self-medication,” he said. He explained that since infants cannot explain what they are going through, and the only language a child has is crying, many underlying problems might not be visible until examined by a doctor.
Instead, parents should take the child straight to a paediatrician for proper examination and treatment.
Furthermore, most infants with colds only need simple measures like nasal saline drops to clear a blocked nose.
“If you give the simple nasal drops, normal saline drops, which will relieve the obstruction, the baby will be relieved and will be fine,” he said.
In cases of sneezing or runny nose, doctors may use “simple and basic antihistamines” but not sedative drugs. He added that cough in infants is often due to reflux rather than lung disease, and in such cases, “antireflux medicine will be working out very well for the cough.”
Dr Vijay also noted that while camphor and Vicks are not recommended for infants, they are generally not life-threatening when inhaled.
“Just by inhalation, that won’t cause any life threatening disease,” he said. However, he warned that excessive or improper use can lead to complications.
Medical references also note that in infants, both topical application and vapour inhalation can cause irritation.
The greater health risk comes from accidental ingestion. Vicks VapoRub contains camphor, which is a topical analgesic that acts on pain receptors in the skin and underlying tissues. Ingesting camphor can lead to nausea, vomiting and, in toddlers, can even be life-threatening.
Vicks offers an alternative called Vicks BabyRub for babies over three months old and under two years, which uses fragrances and aloe in a petroleum jelly base and does not contain camphor oil.
However, experts advise parents and caregivers to consult a doctor even before using this product.
Overuse of any such rub can lead to side effects like skin irritation or injury, and people are advised never to ingest the rub, apply it to the eyes, mouth or nostrils, heat it with water or a vapouriser, or use it on broken skin.
Products like Vicks are not designed for infants and can be harmful when misused. Applying them without medical guidance, especially in the form of strong vapours or mixtures, may lead to serious complications.
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
