Beyond Arnica, Top 5 First Aid Homeopathics

Photo by andrea fregnani.

Everyone must know about Arnica by now right?  It’s the homeopathic poster child of our generation.  It is to homeopathy what Echinacea and Ginkgo are to herbs.  Almost everyone has heard of it, most people have tried it and it works.  I’m assuming you know what homeopathic medicine is, if you don’t sorry for my presumption and read this, then come back.

Great.  So lets take it a step further, and add a way to differentiate the top 5 first aid homeopathic remedies which will increase your beneficial results and induct you into a world of safe and effective home treatment for the most common everyday snafus.  You’ll join the Queen of England as a user and proponent of homeopathy.

• Trauma
  • Arnica M. Blunt trauma with dark black & blue bruising.  Sore muscles on January 1st after your post new years resolution first trip to the gym in 6 months. (muscles in general)
  • Rhus. T.  Painful sprains which result in stiffness. (ligaments and tendons in general)
  • Ledum. Puncture wounds as from a needle, nail or even an animal bite.
• Burns
  • Cantharis. Administer immediately to prevent blistering.
• Cuts
  • Calendula. Lacerations, will help prevent infection.

The beauty of these remedies is that they are very easy to carry around and several pharmacies carry convenient kit boxes to make it even easier.  They are very safe to use with children and work amazingly well with pets.  There are SO many homeopathic remedies for first aid, these are the most commonly used and If I could only take 5 remedies with me for acute trauma these are the ones I would bring.  We’ll cover more home homeopathic uses soon including fevers, colds, teething and so on.  For acute injuries I would recommend you find a 6C or a 30C dose and carefully pour (without touching) 3-5 pellets under your tongue letting them dissolve.  Repeat this as needed or every two hours for a few days.

Arnica and calendula are often available as both a cream and the more common small white pellets.  No harm in using both forms at the same time if you’d like, but if the wound is open I would suggest avoiding creme as the chance of infection will increase.  Instead dress the wound appropriately, and take the internal homeopathic pellets.

As always use your common sense and don’t substitute Ledum for a trip to the ER if you get mauled by a bear.  Still take the Ledum but then get to the ER asap.  If your sweet kitty happens to drill a love wound into your finger, take the ledum and invest in some catnip.

Dr. Nishant Rao is a co-founder of WellWire.com. He is a well-traveled naturopathic doctor and new father, practicing an integrative approach to create wellness in and around Los Angeles. Become a patient or discover his practice.