Zingiber

Prepared from the dried rhizome of Zingiber officinale (family Zingiberaceae) by trituration and subsequent potentisation. Traditional pharmacognosy ascribes to gingerols and shogaols a warming, stimulant action upon gastric and intestinal mucosa, with increased salivation, heartburn, eructations, and a tendency to flatulent colic; larger doses irritate the urinary passages and can provoke burning in urethra with turbid urine [Hughes], [Clarke]. Classical homoeopathic authors therefore place Zing. chiefly among gastric catarrhs with heaviness of stomach “as from indigestible food,” eructations tasting of what has been eaten, meteorism after meals, and catarrh of bladder or urethral burning as a cognate sphere [Allen], [Hering], [Boericke], [Boger]. The remedy is chilly yet craves stimulation; it is worse from cold, damp, cold drinks, and cold bathing, and better from warmth and warm food/drinks, and it often suits persons who overuse spices, tea, or alcohol and then lose digestive tone [Clarke], [Boericke]. [Toxicology] [Clinical]

Smaller provings and abundant clinical confirmations highlight: gastric weight directly after eating, sour or food-tasting eructations, heartburn, flatulence with rumbling and cutting colic, dryness and heat in throat, laryngeal tickle with hoarseness, burning of urethra with frequent urging and turbid urine, and a general chilliness with desire for warmth and stimulants [Allen], [Hering], [Clarke], [Boericke], [Boger]. [Proving] [Clinical]

Zing. is the chilly catarrhal digestive who loses tone from cold, damp, and cold beverages, and then lives by warmth and simple warm food. The stomach is heavy as a stone soon after eating; eructations tasting of food and sour risings press upward as a burning band (heartburn), while below the abdomen rumbles and swells with wind. Relief is mechanical and immediate when the patient belches or passes flatus, or when a hot cloth is applied to the epigastrium—bedside confirmations of choice [Allen], [Clarke], [Boger]. The larynx and bladder repeat the same grammar: cold drinks or damp fog provoke dry tickle and hoarseness; chill and cold bathing provoke burning in urethra with turbid urine; in both, warm sips and dry warmth relieve [Boericke], [Hering]. The temperament is homely and comfort-seeking, not combative; the patient readily reaches for spices or spirits, but these over-stimulations usually aggravate the catarrh next day—a clinical caution that distinguishes Zing. from Nux-v.. Climatic management is half the remedy: avoid cold beverages and cold suppers, keep abdomen and feet warm, eschew cold baths, air rooms dry, and allow warm simple fare. When this regimen is married to Zing., cases resolve in a predictable order: laryngeal tickle fades first, heartburn quiets as belching becomes easy, vesical burning recedes with warm drinks, and the patient sleeps through the night without the old calls to the kitchen kettle.

• Stomach and upper gut (primary): Gastric catarrh with weight like a stone, eructations tasting of food, heartburn, sour risings, flatulent distension; cold drinks/bathing aggravate; warmth and warm food comfort. Cross-ref. Stomach, Abdomen, Food & Drink. [Clarke], [Boericke], [Boger]
• Intestines: Meteorism, rumbling, and griping colic especially after meals or after cold; stool either delayed with much wind or loose in the morning. Cross-ref. Abdomen, Rectum. [Allen], [Hering]
• Genito-urinary mucosa: Burning in urethra, vesical catarrh, turbid, offensive urine, frequent urging; genitals easily excited but soon fatigued. Cross-ref. Urinary, Male/Female. [Clarke], [Boericke]
• Throat and larynx: Dry, hot fauces, tickling provoking cough, hoarseness from cold drinks or damp, better warm sips. Cross-ref. Throat, Respiration. [Allen], [Clarke]
• Liver–biliary (secondary): Dull right hypochondrial weight with flatulence; tongue coated; bitter taste; sluggish bile flow patterns in dyspeptics. Cross-ref. Abdomen, Food & Drink. [Hughes], [Clarke]
• Circulation/reactivity: Chilly surface, sensitive to cold/damp, seeks warmth and spices; local heat soothes gastric and pelvic discomforts. Cross-ref. Generalities, Fever/Chill. [Boericke], [Boger]
• Motion sickness (subset): Nausea with salivation in closed, damp, cold spaces; better fresh air and warm aromatic sips. Cross-ref. Stomach, Respiration. [Clarke], [Hughes]

Zing. types are practical, comfort-seeking, and easily chilled, with mood tethered to their digestive comfort. When the stomach is heavy and distended they grow impatient and dull, avoiding mental exertion and conversation; as soon as wind passes or warmth is applied, irritability lessens and good humour returns, a direct echo of the belching/heat ameliorations [Clarke], [Boericke]. Anxiety arises at night if heartburn climbs the chest or when urinary burning interrupts sleep; there is a homely desire for warm sips and a tendency to self-medicate with spices or spirits, which often aggravates next day’s dyspepsia—an instructive cycle to caution in management [Clarke]. The sensorium feels muffled in damp, cold weather and clears in dry warmth; patients dislike draughts, cold floors, and cold baths. Restlessness is not nervous but physical, driven by the wish to find a position that relieves epigastric weight; this improves by bending slightly forward or loosening tight garments, and by eructations that give real relief [Boger], [Hering]. Compared with Nux-v., Zing. is less irritable and driven, more catarrhal and chilly, and improves markedly by warmth and simple warm food; compared with Carbo veg., it is less collapsed and less distended to the point of air-hunger, though both share flatulence; compared with Capsicum, Zing. is less throbbing and less phlegmatic but similarly aggravated by damp cold [Clarke], [Boericke], [Boger].

Sleepiness after meals yet wakefulness at night if the supper was cold or late; heartburn and flatulence drive the patient up to take warm sips and walk gently until wind passes [Allen], [Clarke]. On cold, damp nights, laryngeal tickle wakes with cough; a warm drink and warm scarf allow return to sleep. Morning finds the patient heavy and unrefreshed if diarrhoea occurred early. When regimen matches the modalities—supper warm and light, no cold drinks, room dry and warmed—sleep consolidates and the next day’s head is clear, a practical cross-link to Generalities.

Of eating and of being in cold, wet places; of searching for warmth; of missed vehicles and closed rooms when seasick. Dreams abate when the stomach is kept warm and simple; seasick imagery vanishes once the patient travels wrapped and with warm sips.

Zing. is a chilly, catarrhal, warmth-seeking remedy whose axis runs stomach ↔ intestines ↔ bladder ↔ larynx, all worse from cold, damp, cold drinks, and cold bathing, and better from warmth and warm food/drinks [Clarke], [Hering], [Boericke], [Boger]. The stone-like weight in the stomach after eating, the eructations tasting of food, the flatulent meteorism with real relief from belching or passing flatus, and the vesical burning with turbid urine after chill compose the guiding quartet. Climatic susceptibility is strong: damp fogs and cellars provoke laryngeal tickle and gastric oppression, whereas dry, warm rooms and hot applications restore comfort. The patient seeks warm sips (not cold), bends slightly forward over the abdomen, loosens clothing, and improves as gas escapes—practical bedside confirmations. Differentiate from Nux-v. (spasmodic, irritable, stimulants, heat not always relieving), Carbo veg. (collapse, air-hunger, putrid eructations), Capsicum (damp cold with burning smart, obstinate), Puls. (rich food, cool air better, thirstless), Ant-c. (heavy overloaded stomach with white-coated tongue but more drowsy and nauseous), and China (flatulence from loss of fluids, distended yet weak, less clearly cold-worse). Zing. thrives where regimen aligns: warm, simple diet, no cold beverages, avoid cold bathing, keep the abdomen and feet warm, and air rooms dry; when these are observed, the chain of gastric–urinary–laryngeal catarrh breaks and the patient regains steady digestion and sleep.

Alternations of chilliness (skin cold, seeks heat) with internal gastric heat and heartburn. Feverish colds in damp weather begin in the throat and larynx then settle upon the stomach; warm drinks and rooms cut short the attack. Perspiration is scant until warmth restores reaction [Clarke], [Boericke].

Chill from slight cold or damp with chattering, worse after cold bathing; heat rises in face and epigastrium as heartburn; sweat returns under warm regimen and brings relief. Suppressed sweat portends urinary and gastric complaints, a repeated cross-link.

Dull, pressing headache accompanies gastric disorder, especially after cold drinks or beer; the scalp may feel cool while the face flushes during heartburn. The head is heavy in damp fogs and clears in dry, warm rooms, cross-linking to the general susceptibility to cold and damp [Clarke]. Vertigo appears on rising after a late, heavy meal or in close, cold conveyances during travel; fresh air helps if not chilling. The temples throb with flatulent distension and ease as the patient belches or passes flatus. Noise and mental effort are poorly endured during gastric oppression; rest and warmth restore capacity. Differentially, Pulsatilla also has head from rich food but is thirstless and ameliorated by open, cool air, unlike chilly, warmth-seeking Zing. [Boericke], [Boger].

Smarting, dryness, and a tendency to rub the eyes accompany dry hot fauces; exposure to cold wind causes lachrymation with laryngeal tickle. Vision may blur during violent eructations and returns as the gastric storm passes; congestion is modest and catarrhal rather than arterial. Reading is difficult after a late, cold supper; brief rest in a warm room suffices [Clarke], [Allen].

Fullness and dull hearing on damp days mirrors the mucous catarrh elsewhere; a short-lived roaring may follow a forcible belch. Earache is rare; cold draughts aggravate; a warm scarf relieves, an echo of the remedy’s warmth> theme.

Coryza from cold damp air with dry, hot nose and thirst for warm drinks; sneezing and rawness soon follow a cold drink. Odours from kitchens can nauseate when digestion is low; the nose dries in heated rooms unless moistened by warm drinks. When the stomach improves, the nasal catarrh recedes, showing the digestive nexus [Clarke].

Pale with dark rings during morning diarrhoea, or flushed and warm in fits of heartburn; lips dry and hot yet the patient dislikes cold draughts upon the face. A peppery burning of lips and tongue may follow imprudent spices or spirits and foretells the next day’s gastric weight [Clarke], [Boericke].

Dryness and burning of mouth and fauces; taste pungent, bitter, or flat according to previous diet; salivation accompanies nausea in cold conveyances. Tongue often coated, yellow-white, with imprint of teeth after heavy suppers. Warm sips soothe the dryness and tickle; cold drinks provoke cough or heartburn, cross-ref. Throat, Stomach [Allen], [Clarke].

No constant tooth pathology; however, cold drinks may shoot pain into sensitive teeth during gastric acidity; warm rinses are preferred. Grinding at night is rare and usually dietary.

Dry, burning fauces with a tickle that provokes cough after cold drinks or in damp air; warm sips relieve promptly [Allen], [Clarke]. There is a sense of crumb or hair in the throat during gastric flatus; clearing the throat does little until wind passes below. Hoarseness attends laryngeal catarrh in fogs and resolves in dry warmth, echoing the remedy’s climatic modality. Unlike Phos., there is little raw pain on talking; unlike Rumex, cough is not exquisitely touch-sensitive to cold air yet is clearly cold-worse [Boericke], [Boger].

Heartburn climbs as a burning band to sternum, provoking short cough if a cold drink has just been taken; warm sips settle both. There is a weight on chest during gastric flatus, relieved when wind passes. Hoarseness in damp fogs with a dry larynx subsides in dry warmth; a lingering cough remains if the patient persists with cold beverages [Clarke].

Palpitation arises sympathetically during gastric distension or after tea/spirits; warmth and belching relieve. No structural heart signs define the remedy; the cardiac sphere is reflex and catarrhal. Anxiety lessens when the patient sits up to eructate and sips something warm.

Shortness of breath in cold, damp rooms with tickle at the laryngeal inlet; better in dry warmth and after warm drinks. Seasick persons in close cabins feel better on deck if wrapped warmly; this mirrors the digestive and throat themes [Clarke], [Hughes].

This is central. Immediately after eating, the stomach feels heavy as from a stone, with sour or food-tasting eructations, heartburn, water-brash, and nausea—especially if drinks were cold or if beer/tea was taken [Allen], [Clarke], [Boericke]. Appetite is capricious; a little warm food relieves sinking but excess aggravates weight; the patient wants warm, simple fare. Pressure or hot applications over the epigastrium soothe; sitting bent forward helps pass wind. There is a marked tendency to flatulence with audible rumbling, and when gas escapes the patient experiences a lifted mood and clearer head, which cross-links to Mind and Head. Compared with Nux-v., Zing. is less spasmodic and irritable, with more catarrhal weight and cold-worse; compared with Carbo veg., it has less collapse and less craving for fanning but shares the eructation relief [Boericke], [Boger]. Seasickness-type nausea appears in cold, close travel and eases in fresh, not chilling air with warm aromatic sips [Clarke], [Hughes].

Distension and rumbling track the small hours after late or cold meals; cutting colic relieves with flatus or a warm compress. The right hypochondrium feels dull and weighty, particularly in those who stimulate with spices or spirits; stools become pale or delayed when the bile is sluggish [Hughes], [Clarke]. Chilliness in the abdomen after cold bathing provokes both flatulence and vesical urging, linking Abdomen with Urinary. Adhesion to warmth is conspicuous; uncovering the belly renews pain. Differentially, China has extreme tympany with weakness from loss of fluids, but it is less cold-worse and less relieved by warm food; Lycopodium has late-day bloating and much right-sidedness but a different mental picture and stronger evening aggravation [Boger], [Boericke].

Stool may be loose in the morning after chill or cold drinks, or delayed with much wind and later burning at anus. Tenesmus is slight; haemorrhoids itch and smart, cold-worse, warm ablution better. After beer there may be immediate pappy stools with flatus; regulation of temperature and diet corrects this tendency [Allen], [Clarke].

A well-marked sphere: frequent urging with burning in urethra, especially after chill, cold bathing, or damp exposure; urine turbid, sometimes offensive, with mucous threads suggestive of vesical catarrh [Clarke], [Boericke]. The bladder feels irritable and unemptied; warm sitz or warm drinks relieve. Compare Cannabis s. for more intense, cutting urethral pain; compare Sarsaparilla for end-of-urination pain; Zing. is simpler, catarrhal, and cold-worse. In men, sexual excitement may precede bladder irritation; in women, damp chill at menses invites vesical burn.

Craves warm food/drinks; cold water, ice, beer, and tea disagree and aggravate heartburn and flatulence. Desires stimulation but cannot digest it; simple warm fare and small meals suit. Eructations taste of food; sour risings and water-brash frequent after cold beverages [Allen], [Clarke], [Boericke].

Easily excited by warmth and spices; premature emission with next-day gastric atony; urethral burning after chill or coitus in the cold; semen thin in exhausted gourmands. Warmth improves pelvic comfort; cold seats and damp steps aggravate [Clarke], [Boericke].

Menses may be delayed by chill, with colic and wind; vesical urging with burning around the period. Leucorrhoea increases after cold bathing; warm applications soothe; dysmenorrhoea is gaseous rather than spasmodic, better bending forward and passing flatus. Compare Puls. (cool air >, thirstless) and Sep. (bearing-down, pelvic laxity) for differentiation.

Lumbar ache accompanies bladder irritation after chill; warmth eases; cold seats aggravate. Between the shoulders a weight is felt during heartburn; this vanishes when wind escapes and when the patient warms the epigastrium.

Cold feet with tendency to damp chill and subsequent vesical or laryngeal catarrh; cramps in calves on cold floors; warm stockings and dry shoes are desiderata. The hands are chilly and moist during gastric storms; warmth returns with eructation relief.

Chilly, dry skin that reacts poorly after cold, damp; suppressed perspiration ushers in gastric and vesical aggravations. Urticarial spots after unusual spices may appear; warmth and simple diet correct the surface. Itching is mild and weather-linked.

• Gastric weight, heartburn, eructations tasting of food
  • Nux vomica — Spasmodic, irritable, cannot bear pressure; often heat intolerant; coffee/overwork aetiology; less cold-worse. Zing.: catarrhal weight, warmth >, cold drinks/bath <. [Clarke], [Boericke]
  • Carbo vegetabilis — Putrid eructations, collapse, must be fanned; desires air; less desire for warm drinks; more burning flatulence. Zing.: milder collapse, strongly warmth-seeking. [Boger]
  • Antimonium crudum — Thick white-coated tongue, aversion to cold bathing, gastric distress from over-eating; more nausea/loathing; Zing.: more flatulent relief by belching. [Boericke], [Clarke]
  • Pulsatilla — Rich food dyspepsia, cool air >, thirstless; Zing. is chilly, wants warm drinks. [Boger]
• Flatulent colic after chill or cold drinks
  • China — Tympany with weakness after loss of fluids; less cold-worse; not prominently better warm drinks. Zing.: chilly, catarrhal, warmth >. [Clarke]
  • Lycopodium — Evening bloating, right hypochondrial fermentation, red sand in urine; mental picture different; Zing. more climatic/diet-linked. [Boger]
  • Colocynthis — Violent cramp colic better hard pressure; Zing.: more warmth/eructation relief, less spasm. [Boericke]
• Vesical burning with turbid urine after chill
  • Cannabis sativa — Acute cutting, gonorrhoeal picture; Zing.: milder, catarrhal, cold-worse. [Clarke]
  • Sarsaparilla — Pain at end of micturition; Zing. lacks end-only signature; has turbid urine and general cold aggravation. [Boger]
  • Dulcamara — Damp-cold bladder catarrh with mucous sediment; nearer to Zing. but Dulc. is more rheumatic-skin; Zing. is more gastric-centred. [Boericke]
• Laryngeal tickle/hoarseness from cold drinks/damp
  • Rumex crispus — Cough from cold air touching the larynx, covers mouth; Zing.: cold drinks/damp provoke, warm sips relieve. [Clarke]
  • Phosphorus — Raw burning, voice fatigue, strong thirst for cold which relieves; opposite to Zing. (cold aggravates). [Boericke]

• Complementary: Nux-v.—in dyspeptics who over-stimulate; Zing. completes the catarrhal, cold-worse phase once spasm subsides. [Clarke]
• Complementary: China—in flatulent atony after illness; Zing. when cold and diet triggers dominate. [Boger]
• Follows well: Ant-c. after over-eating/cold bathing when lingering flatulence and heartburn remain warmth >. [Boericke]
• Precedes well: Carbo veg. if collapse and putrid flatulence supervene; Puls. if rich food intolerance dominates with cool air >. [Boger], [Clarke]
• Compare: Capsicum (damp-cold mucous catarrh), Dulcamara (damp-cold bladder/respiratory), Lyc. (biliary flatulence), Nat-phos. (acid dyspepsia). [Boericke], [Boger]
• Antidotal tendencies: Avoid cold bathing, iced drinks, beer/tea during treatment; warm, simple diet acts as a regimen complement rather than a pharmacologic antidote. [Clarke], [Boericke]

• “Stone-weight” stomach with food-tasting eructations after cold drinks/beer; chilly, wants warmth: Zing. 6C–30C after meals or at bedtime; insist on warm diet, no cold beverages, and hot compress to epigastrium. [Clarke], [Boericke]
• Flatulent colic in damp, cold weather; belching relieves; abdomen uncovered aggravates: Zing. 6C every 2–3 hours; keep abdomen covered/warm. Compare China, Lyc. [Boger]
• Vesical catarrh after chill (burning urethra, turbid urine): Zing. 12C–30C t.i.d.; warm sitz, avoid cold bathing. Compare Dulc., Cann-s. [Clarke], [Boericke]
• Laryngeal tickle/hoarseness from cold drinks or fog: Zing. 30C p.r.n.; warm sips, dry room; avoid iced fluids. Compare Rumex, Phos. [Allen], [Clarke]
• Seasick, chilled in a close cabin (salivation, nausea): Zing. 30C; fresh air with warmth, aromatic warm tea; if severe, compare Cocc., Tab. [Hughes], [Clarke]

Mind

• MIND — IRRITABILITY — during indigestion — better after eructations.
• MIND — ANXIETY — at night — heartburn with.
• MIND — AVERSION to cold air — desires warm room.
• MIND — DULLNESS — after eating — with gastric weight.
• MIND — DESIRE — warm drinks — during chilliness.
• MIND — FASTIDIOUS about warmth of food; cold food aggravates.

Head

• HEAD — HEAVINESS — with stomach disorders — after cold drinks.
• HEAD — PAIN — pressing — forehead/temples — after eating — cold drinks aggravate — belching ameliorates.
• HEAD — VERTIGO — on rising — after late supper.
• HEAD — WEATHER — damp — aggravates — warm room ameliorates.
• HEAD — SENSATION — band from heartburn rising to sternum.

Throat / Larynx

• THROAT — DRYNESS — burning — cold drinks aggravate — warm drinks ameliorate.
• LARYNX — TICKLING — damp, foggy weather — cold air/drinks aggravate — warm sips ameliorate.
• VOICE — HOARSENESS — in damp cold — warm room ameliorates.
• COUGH — from tickle in larynx — after cold drinks — warm drinks ameliorate.
• FAUCES — HEAT — with thirst for warm drinks.

Stomach

• STOMACH — WEIGHT — as from a stone — after eating.
• STOMACH — ERUCTATIONS — tasting of food — relieve.
• STOMACH — HEARTBURN — cold drinks aggravate — warm drinks ameliorate.
• STOMACH — WATERBRASH — after cold beverages.
• NAUSEA — in a carriage/ship — in closed, cold places — open air ameliorates if kept warm.
• STOMACH — HEAT — external warmth ameliorates — cold bathing aggravates.

Abdomen / Rectum

• ABDOMEN — FLATULENCE — excessive — after eating — belching/flatus ameliorate.
• ABDOMEN — COLIC — cutting — warmth ameliorates — cold aggravates.
• HYPOCHONDRIA — RIGHT — fullness/weight — after rich food.
• RECTUM — DIARRHOEA — morning — after cold drink/beer.
• RECTUM — HAEMORRHOIDS — itching/burning — warm ablutions ameliorate — cold aggravates.

Urinary

• URETHRA — BURNING — after chill — cold bathing aggravates — warm sitz ameliorates.
• BLADDER — CATARRH — mucus — urine turbid — cold/damp aggravates.
• URINATION — FREQUENT — small quantities — after exposure to cold.
• URINE — ODOUR — offensive — turbid.
• KIDNEYS — PAIN — dull — with vesical tenesmus after chill.

Generalities

• GENERALITIES — COLD — drinks/food — aggravate; WARM — food/drinks — ameliorate.
• GENERALITIES — BATHING — cold — aggravates; prefers warm.
• GENERALITIES — WEATHER — damp — aggravates; DRY WARM — ameliorates.
• GENERALITIES — UNCOVERING — abdomen — aggravates.
• GENERALITIES — HEAT — external — hot applications — ameliorate.
• GENERALITIES — SPICES/ALCOHOL — after-effects aggravate gastricism.

Hughes — A Manual of Pharmacodynamics (1870s): gingerols/shogaols; warming, gastric–urinary irritant rationale; climatic notes.
Allen, T. F. — Encyclopaedia of Pure Materia Medica (1874–79): proving elements—gastric weight, eructations tasting of food, throat dryness, vesical burning.
Hering — The Guiding Symptoms of Our Materia Medica (1879): clinical confirmations in gastric and vesical catarrh; cold/damp modalities.
Clarke, J. H. — A Dictionary of Practical Materia Medica (1900): catarrhal digestive picture; seasickness subset; regimen pointers.
Boericke, W. — Pocket Manual of Homoeopathic Materia Medica (1901): keynotes—gastric atony, flatulence, heartburn; cold-worse, warmth-better.
Boger, C. M. — Synoptic Key of the Materia Medica (1915): modality grid; relationships with Nux-v., China, Carbo veg., Ant-c.
Phatak, S. R. — Concise Materia Medica (1977): confirmatory—cold-aggravated digestive catarrh; warm-better; urinary irritation.
Farrington, E. A. — Clinical Materia Medica (late 19th c.): digestive comparisons—Nux-v., Puls., Lyc., China.
Dewey, W. A. — Practical Homoeopathic Therapeutics (1901): dyspepsia and catarrhal states; climatic management.
Tyler, M. L. — Homoeopathic Drug Pictures (1942): bedside hints—dietary counsel; warmth versus cold drinks.
Nash, E. B. — Leaders in Homoeopathic Therapeutics (1907): succinct reminders on catarrhal dyspepsia and wind relief.
Morrison, R. — Desktop Guide to Keynotes & Confirmatory Symptoms (late 20th c.): modern confirmations—food-tasting eructations, cold-drink aggravation.