20140911

LISTERINE

Listerine was invented 135 years ago, first as a surgical antiseptic, but also as a cure for gonorrhea. 

An article from 1888 recommends Listerine "for sweaty feet, and soft corns, developing between the toes." 

Over the course of the next century, it was marketed as a refreshing additive to cigarettes, a cure for the common cold, and as a dandruff treatment. 

But it was in the 1920s that the powerful, germ-killing liquid finally landed on its most lucrative use as a magical cure for bad breath.