Bernard O'Shea: I tried slugging, with unexpected benefits

I'm not ready for that (petroleum) jelly

Bernard O'Shea. Photograph Moya Nolan

If you were to say to me two weeks ago that you were “slugging”, It would conjure images in my mind of someone outside on their lawns at night with a flashlight looking for slugs that were destroying and eating their cabbages. Perhaps, I’d think it was some new exercise that was hip and trendy with personal trainers. They get you to crawl along the ground like a slug. By the way, this isn’t preposterous, as bear crawling is an exercise routine. But if you told me that it involved a tub of Vaseline, I would say that it was none of my business what you did in your spare time.

Slugging is a new online cosmetic trend that’s gone viral on tic tock. According to insider.com, “The process involves applying a petroleum-based product like Vaseline to your face over your usual moisturiser and leaving it on overnight, which proponents say forms a protective barrier that can restore moisture to the skin.” It's not the first time, though, that the humble tub of Vaseline has been bestowed with incredible life-altering qualities. Growing up, it was used in our house for everything from cuts and bruises to hair products. That’s right; yours truly reads ingredients on the toilet. Don’t be coy. We all do. I know the elements of shampoos and toilet ducks intimately. If it weren’t for my chemical throne-based reading, I wouldn’t have passed junior cert science. Vaseline makes up the vast majority of ingredients that the fancier hair wax contains. I also used it to oil the chain on my bike and shine my shoes.