Thread: Listerine, not just for halitosis

Has anyone tried Listerine as an aftershave? It was used as such along with many other task around the first world war. I think I will give it a try. I am guessing it was not used to impress the ladies, but rather for it's antiseptic qualities.

OK, I was looking for a link to post and found a post on B&B. Let me quote

I was dumb enough to try it with original scent that has been under sink for years. What a hell of zing! The smell was appaulding! Dont ask why I tried it. --1969Fatboy

I have thought of that, also what about Chloraseptic spray? I may try that tomorrow morning just to see what happens.

Listerine, was suggested to me many years ago by my vet. My dog had hot spots that would not heal and the dog kept making it worse by bitting the area. I was told to spray the listerine on the spot and as far as I can remember the stuff healed the skin and the hot spots were gone. The moral of this story is if it will heal a dogs hot spot no telling what it might do for your skin..

It was probably just to keep the dog from licking/biting
the area since Listerine no doubt contains denatured
alcohol.

- Scott

Originally Posted by mkevenson

Listerine, was suggested to me many years ago by my vet. My dog had hot spots that would not heal and the dog kept making it worse by bitting the area. I was told to spray the listerine on the spot and as far as I can remember the stuff healed the skin and the hot spots were gone. The moral of this story is if it will heal a dogs hot spot no telling what it might do for your skin..

Vanilla extract will do the same thing too, I think it's a combo of the alcohol drying out the skin, disinfecting and tasting terrible to the canine critter.

Also, vanilla extract would probably make a great aftershave!

If you're looking for mint, you can get a bottle of Osage Rub from SRD for $5! Strong stuff!

It amazes me how we come up with random things to put on our freshly shaven faces just 'to see what happens'. I'm not passing judgement, I've looked around for my fair share of random products that I think might do the job too. I found one in Dr. Tichenor's mouthwash, and it smells infinitely better than Listerine to boot. It's intended to be an antiseptic until you dilute it with five parts water to make it palatable enough for mouthwash. If you can find the stuff it's great, just don't forget about adding the water because it burns when you do and feels like a mouthful of molten lava when you don't.

Dr. Tichenor's

It wasn't really random. When Listerine was still owned by the Lambert Pharmaceutical Company, this was one of the uses they listed. It wasn't designed as a mouthwash. It was designed as an antiseptic. After WW1, and the need for extra antiseptic was diminished, they marketed Listerine as a breath freshener. Later, they coined the word halitosis. Once they gave bad breath a medical name, people wanted a cure. Smart marketing.

So, it was used as an aftershave around 100 years ago. I have to say, VERY soothing and no burn. The smell on the other hand.... Well you all know that.

Last night I gave this a try. I didn't have original Listerine on hand, I had orange flavoured Hy-Vee brand. It really wasn't that bad. With the 20+% alcohol it stung a bit, but it was cooling to the face. The smell wasn't that bad, since it was the orange variety. After shaving I asked my wife to smell my face and tell me what it was. She couldn't identify it. She didn't say, "yuk," or "yum" either. One thing I didn't like, is it left kind of a sticky film on my face. Not tacky like things would stick to my face, but running my fingers over the skin tugged a little. Wish I would have had the original around to test that. Maybe one of these days. I don't think I'd use Listerine everyday as an aftershave, but in a pinch it works fine.
Kent

hmmmm not sure if im eager to try it but next time im at the pharmacy i'll check for the travel size and try it. We have scope in the cabinet and im not going to put that on..lol..