VapoRub can be inhaled with hot steam. Since VapoRub ointment is an oil-based medication, it should not be used under or inside the nose or inside the mouth, and it should not be swallowed. This medical advice might contradict oral histories of German-Americans from the Midwest in general but Northwestern Indiana specifically since they might also recall hearing stories of how their great-grandparents ate exactly one tablespoon of Vicks to cure various upper-respiratory illnesses with remarkable, yet here-to-fore unreplicable rates of success. Any oil-based product can get into the lungs if used improperly.