• Canine hunger. Gnawing, hungry, faint feeling at the epigastrium
• Tendency to eat far beyond capacity for digestion
• Peculiar cravings for meat, pickles, radishes, turnips, artichokes, coarse food
• Uterine displacements. Sensation as if womb is soft and feeble; sensation as if will abort

Source: Vegetable kingdom

Synonyms: Hemlock spruce, Canada balsam, Canada pitch

Family: Coniferae

Prover: Dr Gatchell

Temperament: Irritable

Thermal Relationship: Chilly patient

Introduction and History: It is one of the most important remedies for the treatment of chronic gastric affections and female uterine affections.

Habit and Habitat: An evergreen tree found in the rocky woods of British America and United States as far south as the Alleghenies.

Preparation and Parts Used: Tincture of fresh bark and young buds.

Constitution and Physiognomy: It is especially suited to women with uterine displacements, probably due to defective nutrition and debility.

Ailments From: Overeating, draughts of cold air, defective nutrition.

Seat of Action (Pharmacodynamics): It mainly acts on the stomach, gastrointestinal tract, female genital organs, mucous membrane and liver.

Physio-pathological Changes (Pathology)

1. Acts upon mucous surfaces, producing catarrhal conditions, especially of the stomach.
2. It acts upon the female uterine organ producing prolapse of uterus.

Characteristic Physical Guiding Symptoms

Keynote: Gnawing, hungry, faint feeling at the epigastrium.

Generalities: Hands cold and shrunken; skin cold and clammy. Great prostration, wants to lie down all the time.

1. Head: Tipsy feeling, sensation as if the head is swimming, light headed.
2. Appetite: Canine hunger with torpid liver. Has tendency to eat beyond capacity for digestion.
3. Desire or craving: Meat, pickles, radishes, turnips, artichokes, coarse food.
4. Gastrointestinal tract: Burning and distention of stomach and abdomen with palpitations.
5. Prolapse of uterus: Sore feeling at fundus of uterus, relived by pressure; and feels that womb is soft and feeble.
6. Fever: Cold shivering as if blood were ice water and cold water feeling between shoulders; skin clammy and sticky.
7. Stool and rectum: Pain in right shoulder blade and constipation with burning in rectum.
8. Heart: Increased action of the heart with distension of the stomach.
9. Sleep: Drowsy, great restlessness at night, with tossing from side to side.

Important Characteristic Features

Gastrointestinal complaints: It is a very useful medicine for gastric derangements, especially in women. There is canine hunger with a torpid liver, Patient has a tendency to eat beyond capacity for digestion. Patient has a desire or craving for meat, pickles, radishes, turnips, artichokes and coarse foods. GNAWING, HUNGRY, FAINT FEELING AT THE EPIGASTRIUM. Burning and distention of stomach and abdomen with palpitation. Pain in right shoulder blade and constipation with burning in rectum.

General Modalities

Aggravation: By cold, motion, overeating.

Amelioration: Pressure, rest.

Dosage: Dr Boericke recommends first to third potency.

Therapeutic Value: Constipation, Fever, Indigestion, Liver disorders, Prolapse of uterus.