An anecdotal remedy for a black eye consists of applying raw meat to the eye area. Research has yet to find any evidence of this treatment being effective. Likely the raw meat was used when ice packs were not yet commercially available and meat was stored in iceboxes instead of in a protective gas, while cold but not but freezing meat is more gentle to the skin than ice, and will not damage the surface of the skin as the skin temperature cannot go below freezing even in extreme cases. Meat is also soft and comes easier into contact with the skin than blocks of ice that were available.