This article focuses on three NEWTON homeopathics® complexes I believe should be in your medicine chest, and with you when hiking, hunting, fishing, chopping wood, or outside in the wilderness, even when that wilderness is your backyard.
You may be surprised to learn that pharmaceutical companies and homeopathy utilize snake venoms in developing therapeutics. A 2019 article in the journal Toxins states, “While the preliminary effort with regard to snake venoms was to understand the effects of snakebites on humans and to elaborate the actions of the toxins, snake venom components were also understood to be medical tools for thousands of years in Ayurveda, homeopathy and traditional/folk medicine for the treatment of a variety of pathophysiological conditions.”… “With the advancement of modern biotechnology, the use of animal venom components as a source of potential therapeutic values attracted the attention of the pharmaceutical industry.”[1]
In 2008, Dr. Bart Demaerschalk, M.D., a Mayo Clinic neurologist, researched the use of snake venom to see if it could help stroke victims. In 2012, Mayo Clinic’s Cardiorenal Research Laboratory was awarded a $2.5 million grant by The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) to conduct research examining the use of snake-venom peptide to treat heart attacks.
And what do you think they make the snake antivenom out of? You guessed it – snake venom. Of course, it passes through another animal, often a horse, that makes the antibodies that are then injected into you. But it begins with snake venom.
Pharmaceutical companies research the individual components of each snake venom and identify how each component affects the body. An estimated 100-500 pharmacologically active compounds have been found in venoms. They can patent the resulting medication and target it for a specific action. “Snake venoms are not composed of a single component, but instead are complex mixtures of toxic and biologically active proteins and peptides.” [1.]
Conversely, homeopathy uses venom in its entirety, not the individual components. One might consider it a more wholistic approach. Also, homeopathy uses venoms according to traditional homeopathic practices, using a materia medica as a guide, not pharmaceutical clinical studies. It’s similar to eating the whole broccoli plant for all its nutrition, instead of pulling out each nutritional component and taking each component separately in the form of a pill. It was interesting to learn that certain snake species have a different preponderance of toxins in their venom, so when making a pharmaceutical drug, the species is selected based on the components of its venom. Homeopathy, on the other hand, uses a materia medica to determine what snake venom is indicated for each condition. Although most snake venoms share common indications, the unique aspects of each venom are defined in a materia medica. For example, according to traditional homeopathic practice, Crotalus and Lachesis are indicated for bleeding conditions, but Naja is indicated for edema, not for bleeding.
Homeopathy is based on the principle of Similia Similibus Curentur which is Latin for “Like Cures Like.” Therefore, homeopathic Rhus tox (poison ivy) is indicated for a poison ivy rash, homeopathic Coffea cruda (coffee) is indicated for difficulty sleeping, homeopathic Allium cepa (onion) is indicated for burning/watery eyes, and homeopathic Ipecacuanha (ipecac) is indicated for nausea and vomiting.
NEWTON homeopathics® Just In Case is formulated for symptoms associated with wilderness injuries, infections, and bites such as restlessness, bleeding, trembling, nausea, vomiting, swelling, pain, and confusion. Based on traditional homeopathic practice, Just In Case contains 8 homeopathic snake venoms, including Crotalus (rattlesnake), Cenchris (copperhead), and Elaps (coral snake, from the same Elapidae family as the King cobra). In addition, several other remedies are included for specific symptoms such as Phosphorus, indicated for headaches, Ledum palustre (wild rosemary), indicated for puncture wounds, and Arsenicum album (arsenic), indicated for vomiting.
Another NEWTON homeopathics® to consider for your medicine cabinet and a second bottle for your camping/hunting/hiking backpack is Bug Bites~Itch Stopper; formulated for symptoms associated with bites and stings such as pain, burning, itching, and swelling.
Some of the remedies included in Bug Bites~Itch Stopper, based on traditional homeopathic practice, are Calendula (marigold) and Echinacea (cone flower) indicated for wounds, Apis mellifica (honey bee) indicated for swelling, Formica rufa (red ants) and Arsenicum album (arsenic) indicated for itching of the skin, Tarentula hispana (Spanish tarantula spider) and Hypericum perforatum (St. John’s wort) indicated for bites, and Vespa crabro (wasp) and Ledum palustre (wild rosemary) indicated for stings.
So, whether you are assaulted by ants, bees, or bugs, reach for Bug Bites~Itch Stopper.
Consider NEWTON homeopathics® Accident~Injury Rescue complex for injuries. When you twist your ankle while hiking, fall on a rock and bruise your shin, strain your back while carrying camping gear, slam your thumb in the car door, cut yourself with a hunting knife, or puncture your hand with a fishing hook, reach for Accident~Injury Rescue. Hopefully, injuries will not factor in as you go about enjoying life. However, if an injury does occur, grab your NEWTON homeopathics® Accident~Injury Rescue.
As I have discussed in previous articles, this complex can be used for all different types of injuries. Based on traditional homeopathic practice, Calendula (marigold) is indicated for open wounds, Ruta graveolens (garden rue) for tendons, Symphytum officinale (comfrey) for bones, Echinacea (cone flower) for burns, Ledum palustre (wild rosemary) for puncture wounds, Hypericum perforatum (St. John’s wort) for nerves, and Staphysagria (stavesacre) for muscles. Although Aconitum napellus (monkshood) is best known for chills preceding a fever, in this formula, it is indicated for fear.
Don’t let an accident catch you unprepared. As they say, “Stay ready so you don’t have to get ready.” Keep a bottle of NEWTON homeopathics® Accident~Injury Rescue in your medicine cabinet, as well as in your gym bag, your tackle box, your backpack, or in your car. You never know when you may need it.
Note that the remedy indications cited are according to traditional homeopathic practice and not based on double-blind randomized studies funded by pharmaceutical companies. According to the Federal Trade Commission, there is no scientific evidence that homeopathy works. Please refer to www.homeopathyusa.org (American Institute of Homeopathy – the first U.S. professional medical association) for a listing of over 5,000 research articles, or to the Homeopathy Research Institute, based in the United Kingdom, where homeopathy is a popular form of medicine.
References
- El-Aziz, Tarek Mohamed Abd; Soares, Antonio Garcia; Stockand, James D. Snake Venoms in Drug Discovery: Valuable Therapeutic Tools for Life Saving