This Is The Wonder Cream That Soothed My Sore Nose And Chapped Lips When I Was Sick (and The Royals Are Big Fans Too)

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At first I thought my sore throat was just a symptom of dehydration, so I glugged a pint of water and assumed it would disappear. But it didn’t. Then the fever kicked in – I spent the afternoon pulling my jumper on and off as I alternated between boiling hot and shivering cold, a thick fog slowly descending over my brain. By the next morning, I had a bunged up nose, rasping cough, razorblade throat and overwhelming fatigue. It was officially my first bug of the winter season, and five days later, I’m only just emerging on the other side.

As well as keeping the makers of Lemsip afloat, my short episode of illness has helped me discover another wonder product – Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream. I’ve had a tube of this in my bedside table for months, but never used it, because it’s quite a thick, unctuous cream and I don’t have particularly dry skin. However, when I’d blown my nose for the four hundredth time and developed those sore, red nostrils that make a cold particularly attractive, I dug it out from the drawer next to me and smothered it all over my stinging face. The relief was immediate.

Of course, I’m hardly the first person to discover the wonders of Elizabeth Arden’s Eight Hour Cream. Queen Elizabeth II was apparently a huge fan, and I’ve lost count of the numbers of celebrities, models and make-up artists who say they always have a tube on them. In his autobiography, Spare, Prince Harry even said a friend recommended putting it on his frostbitten ‘todger’ after a trip to the Arctic (no confirmation on whether he did or did not go ahead with the suggestion).

The formula is clinically proven to improve the skin’s barrier function in 30 minutes (which is probably why it helped soothe my poor, sore face). It’s made up of an occlusive petrolatum base, which works to soften skin, antioxidant-rich vitamin E, moisturising castor seed oil and inflammatory-busting salicylic acid.

There are cheaper options out there – budget petroleum jellies, for example – but I like that this comes in a tube, so feels much hygienic than dipping your germ-infested fingers in and out of a tub of Vaseline. Plus, it’s a bit stickier than Vaseline, so feels like it will stay on your face than wipe off all over the pillow if you sleep in it (which I did, piling the stuff on before bed to help soften my haggard face).

I’ve found the cream at 55% off (£13.99 instead of £31) online, and I’m going to be stocking up, because as far as I’m concerned it’s cheap at the price to make cold season slightly less agonising. If you have a Rudolph nose and sore lips that need instant soothing, this is my number one recommendation.

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