Whooping Cough Inhaler

The Vapo-Cresolene Vaporizer was a device originally patented as a “cure all” to claiming treat a wide plethora of ailments ranging in severity from a sore throat to diphtheria. Its intended function required the burning of a coal-tar byproduct called Cresolene in the hopes of producing a germ-killing vapor. The product’s timely creation began during a period of sickness and hygienic anxiety. At the turn of the century sickness wreaked through susceptible populations. Along with this, the revelation of germ theory by Robert Koch in the late 19th century brought on a widespread demand for products that could dispel of the invisible threat of sickness and death haunting the public. Vapo-Cresolene Vaporizer saw massive commercial success upon hitting the shelves. This garnered the attention of the American Medical Association who began to identify negative symptoms associated with the product’s use including respiratory distress, muscle weakness, or coma. Their efforts to protect the public from patented medical products such as this eventually resulted in the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906. This legislation acted as the first significant American consumer protection law, creating standards that require pharmaceutical companies to list active ingredients and disclose addictive or dangerous substances.

21 U.S.C. I - FEDERAL FOOD AND DRUGS ACT OF 1906, § 1-26. https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/USCODE-2015-title21/USCODE-2015-title21-chap1-subchapI/summary.
“A Theory of Germs.” National Research Council (US) Committee to Update Science, Medicine, and Animals, 2004.
Cecil Munsey. “Vapo-Cresolene,” July 2010. https://sha.org/bottle/pdffiles/MunseyVapo-cresolene.pdf.
Maura Singleton. “Flashback Friday- Vapo-Cresolene: A Cautionary Tale.” UVS School of Nursing (blog), July 26, 2019. https://nursing.virginia.edu/news/flashback-cresolene/.
Melissa L. Coleman, M.D. and Jane S. Moon, M.D. “Vape-Cresolene: A Dangerous Beauty Redeemed.” Anesthesiology Reflections From the Wood Library-Museum 135, no. 540 (September 2021). https://pubs.asahq.org/anesthesiology/article/135/3/540/116613/Vapo-Cresolene-A-Dangerous-Beauty-Redeemed.
National Museum of American History. “Suppressing Whooping Cough.” n.d. https://americanhistory.si.edu/es/collections/object-groups/antibody-initiative/suppressing-whooping-cough.
“Pertussis,” n.d. https://www.museumofhealthcare.ca/explore/exhibits/vaccinations/pertussis.html#:~:text=Child%20with%20pertussis%20(whooping%20cough).&text=At%20the%20turn%20of%20the,than%2012%20months%20of%20age.
“The Pure Food and Drug Act.” Accessed July 31, 2024. https://www.visitthecapitol.gov/exhibitions/congress-and-progressive-era/pure-food-and-drug-act.