# Why does putting oil/butter on burns make them feel better? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 14, 2008, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-putting-oil-butter-on-burns-make-them-feel-better/472668 "2008-11-14T04:47:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mr\_Buttons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@Mr\_Buttons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Buttons)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2008, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-putting-oil-butter-on-burns-make-them-feel-better/472668/1 "2008-11-14T04:47:22Z")
Disclaimer- Do not try this, as I’ve heard multiple times it’s one the worst possible thing you can do. Anyways, whenever I’d get a burn when i was little, my dad would lament how his mom used to rub butter/oil on it, and the pain would go away almost immediately. He said it wasn’t until he was grown up that it was discovered this was about the worst possible thing you could do. The oil/butter traps the heat building near the burn, and usually makes the burn last a couple of days longer than it should have, with the bonus risk of increase chance at infection. So if rubbing a fatty substance over a burn traps the heat and actually makes the burn worse, why did it work so well at quelling the pain? ---
**Author:** ![MLS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MLS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MLS)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2008, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-putting-oil-butter-on-burns-make-them-feel-better/472668/2 "2008-11-14T18:01:38Z")
It didn’t. He only thought it did. Or – the butter was cold. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2008, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-putting-oil-butter-on-burns-make-them-feel-better/472668/3 "2008-11-14T18:16:51Z")
Butter is cold, that would help. Butter as a fatty thing would sink some heat away from the burn for a little while. Plus, if the burn is bad enough…makes it taste better. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2008, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-putting-oil-butter-on-burns-make-them-feel-better/472668/4 "2008-11-14T18:28:00Z")
I think it’s the same reason fat (both butter and oil are essentially fat) makes a good cooking medium: it’s dense. Dense things make good heat sinks. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2008, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-putting-oil-butter-on-burns-make-them-feel-better/472668/5 "2008-11-14T19:03:50Z")
Good point. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2008, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-putting-oil-butter-on-burns-make-them-feel-better/472668/6 "2008-11-14T19:37:39Z")
Anything mother does to comfort you will distract you from the pain. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2008, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-putting-oil-butter-on-burns-make-them-feel-better/472668/7 "2008-11-14T19:44:35Z")
> [@](#): > > I think it’s the same reason fat (both butter and oil are essentially fat) makes a good cooking medium: it’s dense. Dense things make good heat sinks. Remember, water is denser than fat. It’s also got a higher specific heat. ---
**Author:** ![Jake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2008, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-putting-oil-butter-on-burns-make-them-feel-better/472668/8 "2008-11-14T20:19:29Z")
> [@Inigo\_Montoya](#): > > Butter is cold, that would help. > Butter as a fatty thing would sink some heat away from the burn for a little while. > > Plus, if the burn is bad enough…makes it taste better. EEW! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2008, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-putting-oil-butter-on-burns-make-them-feel-better/472668/9 "2008-11-14T20:22:28Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Remember, water is denser than fat. It’s also got a higher specific heat. Water, however, is notoriously difficult to get to stay all in one place. I should have pointed out that as part of my original answer. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2008, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-putting-oil-butter-on-burns-make-them-feel-better/472668/10 "2008-11-14T20:46:23Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > …It’s also got a higher specific heat. I did not know that. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2008, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-putting-oil-butter-on-burns-make-them-feel-better/472668/11 "2008-11-14T21:04:17Z")
> [@KneadToKnow](#): > > Water, however, is notoriously difficult to get to stay all in one place. I should have pointed out that as part of my original answer. 😕 (looking in ice cube tray) 😕 😉