Blatta americana
Quick Facts
- What it is: A homeopathic single drug made from the American cockroach, Periplaneta americana, diluted until essentially none of the source material remains.
- Main uses: Asthma and wheezing in homeopathic practice, Breathlessness worse in damp weather, Cough with thick mucus
- Best for: People already under medical care for asthma who want to try a homeopathic remedy alongside it, with their doctor's knowledge
- Active ingredients: None measurable at 30C, Insect protein, chitin (hard shell material) and cockroach allergens in the mother tincture and very low strengths
- Forms: Sugar pellets (6C, 30C, 200C), Liquid dilutions in alcohol, Low strengths such as 3X and 6X, Mother tincture, rarely sold to the public
- Time to effect: Not established; no human trial has measured it.
- Side effects: Little expected at 30C; allergy risk with low strengths, and real harm if it replaces asthma treatment.
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What is Blatta americana?
Blatta americana is a homeopathic single drug, which means it is made from one substance and not a blend. The source is the American cockroach, Latin name Periplaneta americana. Homeopaths give it mainly for asthma and other breathing trouble, above all when damp, dusty or mouldy places make things worse.
The remedy is made by serial dilution. The starting material is diluted over and over, with hard shaking at each step. At 30C, a very common strength, essentially none of the original cockroach material is left in the pill or drops.
Trial evidence does not separate remedies made this way from placebo, which is a dummy treatment with no active content. Long use inside a tradition is not proof that something works, so this page reports the two things on separate lines. We say what homeopathy has claimed, and we say what human trials show.
Blatta americana has only a small place in homeopathic writing. The closely related remedy Blatta orientalis, from the oriental cockroach, is the one most homeopaths reach for, and the two are often described in the same breath. Please read the safety section below before you try either one.
How does Blatta americana work?
There is no accepted way this remedy could work in the body, because at usual strengths there is nothing measurable left in it.
Homeopathy teaches that a substance which causes symptoms in a well person can settle similar symptoms in a sick person. It also teaches that repeated dilution with shaking leaves behind some kind of activity in the water or alcohol. Neither idea is supported by chemistry or by controlled human trials.
A plainer explanation fits the reports better. People often feel better after any treatment because of time, expectation and attention, and this is what placebo means. Any relief you notice from Blatta americana most likely comes from those things rather than from the remedy itself.
What forms does Blatta americana come in?
The usual forms are small sugar pellets and liquid drops.
Pellets are made of sucrose or lactose (milk sugar) and are placed under the tongue. Liquid dilutions are normally preserved in alcohol and taken in a little water. Ask for the pellet form if you avoid alcohol.
Common strengths sold to the public are 6C, 30C and 200C. Lower decimal strengths such as 3X and 6X also exist. The mother tincture is rarely sold to the public and should not be self-prescribed.
Where it comes from:
Cockroach remedies entered homeopathy in the nineteenth century, and the best-known use is for asthma.
The asthma reputation is usually credited to homeopaths working in Bengal, India, who described the oriental cockroach remedy Blatta orientalis for wheezing made worse by damp. Blatta americana was written up alongside it as a close relative with a similar picture. It never became a major remedy and appears only briefly in most homeopathic reference books.
Separately, crude cockroach extract has a long history in Chinese folk medicine for wounds and stomach complaints. That is a different kind of product and tells you nothing about the diluted homeopathic version.
Who should avoid Blatta americana?
- Do not use if you are having an asthma attack or your breathing is getting worse — use your reliever inhaler and get medical help straight away.
- Do not use if you are planning to stop, skip or lower any prescribed asthma or lung medicine, because that can be life-threatening.
- Do not use if you are allergic to cockroaches or house dust, unless your doctor agrees, since low strengths may still hold insect protein.
- Do not use if you have ever had anaphylaxis (a severe whole-body allergic reaction that can close the airway) to any insect product.
- Do not use if you are giving it to a child for breathing problems without a doctor involved in that child's care.
- Do not use if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, unless your doctor knows and agrees.
- Do not use the alcohol-based liquid if you avoid alcohol for health, religious or recovery reasons, or if you take disulfiram or metronidazole — ask for sugar pellets instead.
When should you see a doctor?
Call emergency services if you cannot speak a full sentence, your lips or fingers look blue, or your reliever inhaler is not helping. Get the same-day help if your breathing is worse than usual, you are waking at night short of breath, or you are using your reliever more often than normal. See your doctor within a few days for a cough that lasts more than three weeks, any blood in your phlegm, a fever with chest pain, or unexplained weight loss. Also see a doctor if you get a rash, itching or swelling after a dose, and stop taking it.
Evidence grades and traditional-use labels are explained in our methodology. Nothing here is medical advice.
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