Azerbaycan n ifal naftalan ya azerbaijan s healing naftalan oil euronews t rk e
Naftalan is a unique grade of black oil, found in Naftalan, Azerbaijan, known for its naphthalene content and use in alternative medicine.
While Naftalan crude oil is too heavy for normal export uses (unlike Azerbaijan's plentiful Caspian Sea oil), it contains about 50 percent naphthalene, a hydrocarbon that is the active ingredient in coal tar soaps, which are used to treat psoriasis. As such, it is only used for medicinal purposes. People using the oil generally sit in a bath and are covered in oil up to their necks. There are numerous petroleum spas in the city of Naftalan itself.
The naphthalene in the oil is claimed to give it therapeutic properties, however Western experts say it, and bathing in crude oil in general, might actually be carcinogenic.
