# I've heard it has many uses... **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 24, 2005, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443 "2005-08-24T16:44:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/21 "2005-08-24T22:38:22Z")
I imagine a Lysol feminine hygine product might be necessary [for some women](http://home.comcast.net/~cpeek001/nice1.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![whiterabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/cab0a1/32.png) [@whiterabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whiterabbit)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/22 "2005-08-24T23:48:54Z")
I’ve heard of this, and YEEEAAARRRRGGGHHHHHH!!! ---
**Author:** ![SusanStoHelit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@SusanStoHelit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SusanStoHelit)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2005, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/23 "2005-08-24T23:50:43Z")
> [@devena](#): > > (But for actual hygiene, they used baking soda and water.) > > > [@lieu](#): > > > > When I was a kid I’d put that mixture into a plastic rocket, shake it up and it’d blast off into the air. That would be baking soda and vinegar, not water. Baking soda and vinegar _down there_ would be… tingly, to say the least. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/24 "2005-08-25T00:35:36Z")
> [@Hypno-Toad](#): > > Are you sure this isn’t a joke? Listerine, I might believe. But not Lysol. And the ad uses language that just seems too straightforward for the era it seems to portray. You’d think so, but Lysol’s history as a feminine hygiene product is well-documented: [1920s](http://www.mum.org/Lysol28.jpg) [Another from the '20s](http://www.antique-hangups.com/0221.jpg) [1930s](http://www.decodog.com/inven/women/wo26094.jpg) [Early 1940s](http://www.nashvillewebreview.com/automat/america/1940s/1940s/40sAds/lysol_douche.jpg) (This one just beggars belief.) [Late 1940s](http://www.mum.org/lovequiz.jpg) Douche ads have practically always been [coyly frank](http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu/adaccess/BH/BH02/BH0215-72dpi.jpeg). How else are you going to put it across? ---
**Author:** ![gardentraveler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gardentraveler/32/3576_2.png) [@gardentraveler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gardentraveler)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/25 "2005-08-25T00:52:27Z")
:eek: Ewwwwwwwwwww!!! :eek: :eek: I think the delicate flower of my womanhood just keeled over and died. I suppose they recommended Raid® as a deodorant, too??? GT ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/26 "2005-08-25T00:56:19Z")
The newspaper ads I can access on my database from the 1940’s are rather explicit in what they were suggesting a woman might need Lysol for. This is from a 1945 ad in a newspaper > [@](#): > > This wife is smart. She knows how to guard her marriage happiness…never endangers it by carelessness about feminine hygiene. Yes, her doctor told her that “now-and-then” care isn’t enough. He advised using Lysol disinfectant for douching–always. Cleanses thoroughly. Deodorizes. A proved germ-killer–far more dependable than salt, soda, or other homemade solutions. Yet so gentle for douching, it won’t harm sensitive vaginal tissues–just follow easy directions. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/27 "2005-08-25T00:59:27Z")
One hopes that the directions suggested diluting the stuff pretty heavily. ---
**Author:** ![danceswithcats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9e8a1a/32.png) [@danceswithcats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/danceswithcats)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/28 "2005-08-25T01:37:17Z")
The ad clipping I was sent reads: > [@](#): > > She was a “Perfect Wife” …except for ONE NEGLECT\* > She was efficient. Her home was always neat, clean, well-run. …economical. She knew how to make a budget behave. …affectionate. She was warm-hearted and tender. …cheerful. She never nagged, or moped, or wept. But…she was careless (or ignorant) about feminine hygiene. \*and her husband would gladly have traded most of her virtues to correct this one fault. Lysol might have made her score 100% Coupon at the bottom for a free booklet on making your cooter less stanky with Lysol. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Cranky\_Hermit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/13edae/32.png) [@Cranky\_Hermit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cranky_Hermit)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/29 "2005-08-25T02:17:08Z")
WOW! I’m stunned! I wonder what a contemporary doctor would say about this use? And, I’m curious about the dilution-ratio… ---
**Author:** ![adhemar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@adhemar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adhemar)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/30 "2005-08-25T02:29:31Z")
wow! I knew women who did this but I never knew thay Lysol advertised it. I always thought it was like using Coca Cola for a douche… something done but not necessarily reccomended. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/31 "2005-08-25T03:03:42Z")
I checked out an old Sears catalog from the library, oh, about 1902? (It was a reproduction). There was one section for medical supplies, including douches, syringes, etc. Don’t most doctors nowadays tell you NOT to douche? I’ve always been told it can cause infection. ---
**Author:** ![psycat90](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@psycat90](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psycat90)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/32 "2005-08-25T03:32:47Z")
> [@adhemar](#): > > wow! I knew women who did this but I never knew thay Lysol advertised it. I always thought it was like using Coca Cola for a douche… something done but not necessarily reccomended. See DeVena’s post above. It was advertised as “feminine hygiene” because advertising contraceptives was illegal. I have a bottle of Lysol in my kitchen. It certainly does not list douching as an intended use today. I can tell you one thing, if it came down to a Lysol douche or a house full of screaming kids, my hooha would smell like a Doctor’s office. ---
**Author:** ![beckwall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b487fb/32.png) [@beckwall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beckwall)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/33 "2005-08-25T06:19:16Z")
> [@astro](#): > > I imagine a Lysol feminine hygine product might be necessary [for some women](http://home.comcast.net/~cpeek001/nice1.jpg). The goggles…that is NOT a woman. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/34 "2005-08-25T06:38:16Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Are you SURE it wasn’t a special type of Lysol? Jesus Christ, my naughty bits just crawled up into my rib cage at the very idea! Lysol’ll get them back where they belong! Although getting the Lysol into your chest cavity is a little tricky at first… ---
**Author:** ![irishgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@irishgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irishgirl)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 8:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/35 "2005-08-25T08:23:16Z")
Douching is a really, really bad idea. It’s an ineffective contraceptive (you can actually wash more stuff UP there) and is likely to lead to all sorts of nastiness infection wise. Women NEED bacteria in heir vaginas to keep it healthy, like the “good bacteria” you need in your GI tract. To be honest they reckon that most of the reason douching worked was by causing a mild endometritis (inflammation of the lining of the womb) so that nothing could implant. (My bottle of TCP in the bathroom lists dilutions for home midwifery, but not for feminine hygiene, we don’t have Lysol here.) ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/36 "2005-08-25T10:11:24Z")
> [@samclem](#): > > One hopes that the directions suggested diluting the stuff pretty heavily. Hell no! For undiluted use – _and_ women were instructed to stick a lit lucifer up there immediately afterwards. They built 'em tougher back then. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/37 "2005-08-25T12:40:14Z")
> [@Hypno-Toad](#): > > Are you sure this isn’t a joke? My bad. Never in a million years would I have reckoned this could have been anything other than an _Onionesque_ attempt at merriment. > [@irishgirl](#): > > Women NEED bacteria in **heir** vaginas to keep it healthy… If there’s a Will, there’s a way. Aside from the surprise that _such_ a product would even be considered for _such_ a purpose, what bowls me over more than anything else is the seeming openness in which such a relatively taboo was apparently discussed. Using magazine and newspaper advertisements isn’t necessarily targeting just a select audience in a reasonably discreet manner. The concept of Lysol in the hooha was pretty much out there for all age groups and genders to innocently come across and considering it’s for a 1930s to 1960s audience this openness surprises me greatly. ---
**Author:** ![Mycroft\_Holmes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a5b964/32.png) [@Mycroft\_Holmes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mycroft_Holmes)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/38 "2005-08-25T13:23:13Z")
> [@Larry Mudd](#): > > Douche ads have practically always been [coyly frank](http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu/adaccess/BH/BH02/BH0215-72dpi.jpeg). How else are you going to put it across? I love the line “So that’s why Dick has been so cool to me.” in that one. 😃 “Truly a modern miracle” indeed! ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/39 "2005-08-25T13:24:34Z")
Imagine what the ads for Mr. Clean and Pine-Sol must have looked like. Pine-Sol. Forest-fresh femininity. ---
**Author:** ![phall0106](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/phall0106/32/5934_2.png) [@phall0106](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phall0106)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2005, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443/40 "2005-08-25T13:44:39Z")
> [@astro](#): > > I imagine a Lysol feminine hygine product might be necessary [for some women](http://home.comcast.net/~cpeek001/nice1.jpg). ohmygod. Please tell me that is a twisted version of Photoshop and isn’t real… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ive-heard-it-has-many-uses/318443.md?page=3)