One is for soothing a head cold, the other for clearing congestion. 'Imagine a medieval Vicks VapoRub,' she says. The recipes, for a herbal head poultice and a stale ale, mustard seed and nutmeg ...

Q: You have written about using Vicks VapoRub on the soles of the feet to stop a nighttime cough. When I have trouble falling asleep, I do the same thing. I smear a layer of Vicks on the soles of ...