1. Nux vomica (Poison-nut)

• Sphere of Action: Pre-eminent remedy for symptoms arising from modern, sedentary, urban life, overindulgence in rich/spicy food, coffee, alcohol, and mental overwork.

• Key Symptoms: Nausea and ineffectual urging to vomit—”If I could only vomit, I would be so much better.” Heavy, full, and bloated sensation hours after eating. Irritable temperament.

• Materia Medica Reference:

  • H.C. Allen’s Keynotes: “Ailments from highly seasoned food, from stimulants, from sedentary habits.”

  • Boericke’s Materia Medica: “Heartburn with flatulence… Bad effects from coffee, spirits, tobacco, and highly seasoned food.

2. Lycopodium (Club Moss)

• Sphere of Action: Best suited for chronic digestive issues, especially related to the liver and flatulence.

• Key Symptoms: Extreme distension and fullness, especially in the lower abdomen, worse after a light meal. Loud rumbling (borborygmi). Satiety after little food. Cravings for sweets.

• Materia Medica Reference:

  • Boericke’s Materia Medica: “Dyspepsia, fermentation, sour eructations, much flatulence.” “Fullness, not relieved by belching.”

  • J.H. Clarke’s Dictionary: “Feeling of tension around the hypochondria, as from the pressure of a hoop.

3. Carbo vegetabilis (Vegetable Charcoal)

• Sphere of Action: Used for chronic indigestion characterized by sluggish vitality and coldness.

• Key Symptoms: Excessive, offensive flatulence and distension confined largely to the upper abdomen/stomach. The only relief comes from frequent, loud, and fetid belching. Craves fresh air (must be fanned).

• Materia Medica Reference:

  • H.C. Allen’s Keynotes: “The simplest food distresses. Flatulence, great accumulation of gas… relieved by belching.”

  • Boericke’s Materia Medica: “Eructations; heavy, full feeling, much flatulence, temporarily relieved by belching.

4. Arsenicum album (Arsenic Trioxide)

• Sphere of Action: Indicated for acute and chronic inflammatory states (gastritis/ulcers) with primary keynote of burning pain.

• Key Symptoms: Intense, burning pain in the stomach, ameliorated by hot applications/hot drinks. Great thirst, but drinks little and often. Anxious, restless, and prostrate.

• Materia Medica Reference:

  • Boericke’s Materia Medica: “Burning pains; better by heat… Vomiting after eating or drinking.”

  • H.C. Allen’s Keynotes: “Anxiety, great anguish and restlessness… great thirst; drinks little and often.

5. Pulsatilla (Wind Flower)

• Sphere of Action: Suited to patients with mild, tearful, and yielding dispositions; complaints follow consumption of rich, fatty foods.

• Key Symptoms: Indigestion, nausea, and heartburn after rich food, pastries, or ice cream. Symptoms are changeable (shifting). Thirstless, with a dry mouth. Better in the open air.

• Materia Medica Reference:

  • H.C. Allen’s Keynotes: “Bad effects from rich food, pork, pastry, greasy things, ice cream.”

  • Boericke’s Materia Medica: “Stomach easily disordered. Heavy, painful dyspepsia.

6. Robinia pseudoacacia (Black Locust)

• Sphere of Action: Highly specific for hyperchlorhydria (excessive acidity).

• Key Symptoms: Vomiting of intensely sour fluid, which sets the teeth on edge. Burning pain in the stomach and esophagus. Nocturnal aggravation.

• Materia Medica Reference:

  • Robinia’s Clinical Use (Stacy Jones): “Robinia pseudoacacia, in minute doses… a reliable remedy for Acidity of the stomach.

7. Phosphorus (Element)

• Sphere of Action: Deep-acting remedy for nervous, sensitive, and sympathetic individuals, often with burning and hemorrhagic tendencies.

• Key Symptoms: Violent, burning pain in the stomach. Pain and burning are temporarily relieved by cold drinks/ice cream, but the distress returns as soon as the fluid warms up. Thirst for large quantities of ice-cold water.

• Materia Medica Reference:

  • Boericke’s Materia Medica: “Burning pain in stomach… Vomiting; comes up almost as soon as swallowed.

8. Bryonia alba (Wild Hops)

• Sphere of Action: Primary action on serous membranes. Pains are stitching/sharp, always worse from motion.

• Key Symptoms: Heavy, sinking sensation in the stomach, as if a stone lay there. Great thirst for large quantities of cold water, but at long intervals. Must lie perfectly still due to pain.

• Materia Medica Reference:

  • Boericke’s Materia Medica: “Feeling of a stone in the stomach. Worse from motion.

9. China officinalis (Peruvian Bark)

• Sphere of Action: Indicated for exhaustion from loss of vital fluids and great weakness.

• Key Symptoms: Tremendous bloating that affects the entire abdomen. Unlike Carbo-v and Lycopodium, the distension is NOT relieved by belching or passing wind. Worse after consuming fruit.

• Materia Medica Reference:

  • H.C. Allen’s Keynotes: “Distension of abdomen; relieved momentarily by eructation, but soon returns.”

  • Boericke’s Materia Medica: “Loud rumbling and fermentation; much flatulent colic.

10. Bismuth subnitricum (Bismuth)

• Sphere of Action: Specific for gastric pain and vomiting, especially in gastritis and ulceration.

• Key Symptoms: Excruciating, burning, pressing pain in the stomach, often extending to the spine. Vomiting large quantities, sometimes vomiting food one day after eating. Pain relieved by cold drinks.

• Materia Medica Reference:

  • Boericke’s Materia Medica: “Gastralgia; burning, pressing pain; great thirst… Vomiting of enormous quantities.