What is Antimonium tartaricum?

Antimonium tartaricum is a homeopathic remedy. It is made from tartar emetic, a salt of antimony and potassium. Antimony is a heavy metal, and the raw salt is a poison that was once given to make people vomit.

Homeopaths pick this remedy for a wet, rattling cough. The chest sounds full of mucus that will not come up. They also use it for nausea with a cold sweat and a white-coated tongue.

The salt is watered down again and again to make the remedy. At 30C, none of the starting salt is left. Tests in people do not show it works better than a dummy pill (placebo), and long use in a tradition is not proof that a remedy works.

How does Antimonium tartaricum work?

No one has shown how this remedy could work in the body.

Homeopathy rests on two old ideas. The first is 'like cures like'. A raw substance that causes signs in a well person is said to treat those same signs once it is watered down.

Large doses of tartar emetic cause vomiting and hard, noisy breathing. That is why homeopaths chose it for coughs and sickness.

The second idea is that shaking and watering down make a remedy stronger. That is the opposite of how drugs behave. At 30C the mix has been diluted 1 part in 100, thirty times over.

At that point not one atom of the salt is left. There is no known way for water to hold a 'memory' of it. Trials cannot tell such remedies apart from a dummy pill.

What forms does Antimonium tartaricum come in?

Most shops sell it as small sugar pills or pellets that melt under the tongue. Drops in water and alcohol are also sold.

Common strengths are 6C, 30C and 200C. Some makers use the X scale, such as 6X or 30X. A few combination cough products list it as one of several ingredients.

Choose 30C or higher. Only these are free of antimony.

Where it comes from:

Tartar emetic has a long past in Western medicine. From the 1600s, doctors used it to make people vomit and to purge them. Later it was used against some parasites.

It was dropped because it poisoned people and safer drugs came along.

Homeopathy took it up in the early 1800s. Followers of Hahnemann took it themselves and wrote down what they felt. It has been a staple of homeopathic materia medica (the reference book of remedies) ever since.

What does Antimonium tartaricum help with?

• Wet, rattling cough with mucus that will not come up: This is the classic homeopathic picture for this remedy. Books describe a loud, wet chest, a weak cough and a tired person who wants to sit up. No human trial has tested the remedy for this. A rattling chest in a baby, an older person or anyone short of breath needs a doctor, not a remedy.
• Chest congestion in bronchitis (swelling of the airways): Homeopaths use it in late-stage chest colds when mucus sits low in the lungs. This use comes from old remedy books, not from trials. Bronchitis that lasts more than three weeks, or comes with fever or blood in the phlegm, needs medical care.
• Nausea and vomiting with a cold sweat: The raw salt was once used to force vomiting, so homeopaths use the diluted form for sickness. The remedy picture includes a white tongue, thirst for small sips and a clammy skin. There is no trial evidence that it settles nausea better than a dummy pill.
• Feeling short of breath with a noisy chest: Old texts describe a person who must sit up to breathe. This is a warning sign, not a home-care problem. Trouble breathing can mean asthma, pneumonia (a lung infection) or heart failure, and needs urgent care.
• Pustular skin rashes such as chickenpox: Some homeopathic books list it for large, pus-filled spots that leave marks. This is traditional use only. No human trial supports it, and chickenpox in adults, babies or people with a weak immune system needs a doctor.

Which foods are rich in Antimonium tartaricum?

This is a remedy, not a nutrient, so no food supplies it.

What are the side effects of Antimonium tartaricum?

• No expected effects at 30C, since no starting material is left
• Upset stomach, wind or loose stools in people who cannot digest milk sugar (lactose)
• Rare allergic reaction to the sugar carrier, such as rash or itching
• Alcohol content in drops, which matters for children and people avoiding alcohol
• A short flare of symptoms, which homeopaths call an 'aggravation'
• With low-potency forms only: vomiting, belly pain, diarrhoea, and harm to the liver, kidneys and heart rhythm from antimony
• The main real-world risk: putting off treatment that works

Good to know:

At 30C and above the pills carry no drug effect, so side effects are rare and mild. Most reports involve the sugar or alcohol carrier, not the remedy.

The serious risks come from two places. One is low-potency products that still hold antimony, a poisonous heavy metal. The other is using this instead of care for a chest that is getting worse.

How much Antimonium tartaricum should you take?

• Recommended daily: No dose has been shown to work, so there is no proven amount. Labels usually say 3 to 5 pellets of 30C under the tongue, up to three times a day while symptoms last. Drops are usually 5 drops in a little water. Do not buy strengths below 12C or 24X. These may still contain antimony.
• Best time of day: Any time of day. Homeopathic makers suggest taking it 15 minutes away from food, drink, toothpaste or strong mint, though this rule has never been tested.
• With or without food: Taken without food, usually 15 minutes before or after eating or drinking. Pills are meant to melt under the tongue rather than be swallowed with water.
• Time to effect: Homeopaths expect a change within hours to a day or two in a short illness. No trial has shown any change beyond what a dummy pill produces.
• How long to take it: Homeopaths use it only for short spells during an illness. If nothing has changed in 2 to 3 days, stop and rethink. Do not keep taking it for weeks for a cough that will not go.