# Does rubbing ben-gay on your skin make you feel better?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-rubbing-ben-gay-on-your-skin-make-you-feel-better/214838>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [November 23, 2003, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-rubbing-ben-gay-on-your-skin-make-you-feel-better/214838 "2003-11-23T14:35:36Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![ParentalAdvisory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/53a042/32.png) [@ParentalAdvisory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParentalAdvisory)\
**Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-rubbing-ben-gay-on-your-skin-make-you-feel-better/214838/1 "2003-11-23T14:35:36Z")

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It’s bad enough that I’m here on a Sunday for 12 hours at work. Now I have to put of with this awful smell of ben-gay by a co-worker who slept on the wrong side of a pillow and his neck is now sore. But this isn’t the pit, so I won’t get all pissed here.

Do these ben-gay type creams make your muscles and/or bones feel better when applied? It seems like a placebo effect if you ask me. It’s like applying car wax to your car to make it run better.

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**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\
**Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-rubbing-ben-gay-on-your-skin-make-you-feel-better/214838/2 "2003-11-23T18:53:31Z")

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To answer your question, yes. It does make you feel better.

It doesn’t do anything else than relieve pain, but it works. There are tons of studies on capsaicin for pain relief.

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**Author:** ![Violet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/ebca7d/32.png) [@Violet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Violet)\
**Post date:** [November 23, 2003, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-rubbing-ben-gay-on-your-skin-make-you-feel-better/214838/3 "2003-11-23T19:16:53Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by ParentalAdvisory \*  
> \*\*… Now I have to put of with this awful smell of ben-gay by a co-worker who slept on the wrong side of a pillow and his neck is now sore. …
> 
> Do these ben-gay type creams make your muscles and/or bones feel better when applied? \*\*

I like Tiger Balm, but that also has a fragrance. 🙂 Yes, those do help. You might suggest to the person that they try the non-scented versions. Or if you pick their name for xmas exchange, buy them a tube.