February 22nd, 2010 
The FLHC 
Lydia’s lost… Ok, I know that I spend way too much time shopping online when I have this fact stuck in my head: Bag Balm is the #3 best selling beauty product on Amazon.com. What’s up with that?!? What’s in this stuff, what does it do, and do I need to buy some?
The Left Brain’s leading reply:
Bag Balm reminds me of “Mane ‘n Tail:” They are both products designed for animals that humans have adopted for their own use. That’s right, Bag Balm is actually a product intended to treat skin condition of animals.
Bombastic about Bag Balm
According to the website for Dairy Association Company, Inc, the company that makes Bag Balm, it’s been used since 1899 to keep cows from becoming chapped. I assume this means it’s used to moisturize and protect the sensitive skin of the udders. For more background on the history of Bag Balm read this USA Today article. Just for the record, the website makes no mention of use on humans, which is not surprising since the product contains a drug active that is not approved for over the counter use on people.
Bag Balm ingredients
Since this isn’t a typical cosmetic product it doesn’t have to follow the labeling rules for cosmetics and therefore the package doesn’t have to carry a complete list of ingredients. But according to Drugstore.com I see that it contains 8-Hydroxyquinoline Sulfate at 0.3% in a petrolatum and lanolin base. Petrolatum and lanolin are both common skin care ingredients and are also used in heavy duty ointments and wound care products. The real star of the show is the 8-Hydroxyquinoline Sulfate. According to several sources such as this one, this compound is a bacteriostatic and fungistatic agent and it’s used to prepare antiseptics, deodorants, antiperspirants, and fungicides. (Personally, I’ve never seen this used in any products for humans.)
The Beauty Brains bottom line
I see Bag Balm as a product that combines excellent moisturizing ingredients with a drug active that has antiseptic properties. However, since the active agent is not approved for use on people, the company can not legally make claims in this regard. You may see benefits from using it but legally the company can only promote it for use on animals.
What do YOU think? Have you ever used Bag Balm or Mane ‘n Tail? Leave a comment and share your animalistic thoughts with the rest of the Beauty Brains community.
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I never found Bag Balm all that great for moisturizing. However, I have used it when I needed to make a poultice. Like when I stepped on some broken glass and a piece was way too deep in my heel to get it out without going to the hospital. What I did instead is take some Bag Balm and some Tiger Balm, mix them together with some Neosporin and epsom salts, put it on along with a huge bandage, then a sock on top of that. Next morning the glass was right there at the surface of the skin and I just had to scrap my nail along it to get it out.
I can’t seem to find Tiger Balm anymore but I still use the Bag Balm/Neosporin/epsom salt combo whenever I need a poultice for a deep and/or nastily infected wound.
Bag Balm seems to be one of those ‘cult items’ that take on mythological status. Creamy Vaseline is my favourite. It works incredibly well for me–and it smells far, far better than the Bag Balm.
Jami–if you have any Asian grocery stores around, try them. That’s where I get my Tiger Balm. The prices are usually better and they often carry white Tiger Balm which I like a little better. Once, I even found Tiger Balm patches which are a dream with migraines.