Arsenicum metallicum
Made from metallic arsenic — the grey element itself, and the classical remedy of the exfoliative, scaling skin.
The whole picture, in one breath
Think of skin that scales and peels: the exfoliative dermatitis of the books' arsenic chapter, the scaling that lifts and sheds, and the grey element of the family's foundation. The exfoliating-skin element: that is Arsenicum metallicum.
The substance, in plain words
Metallic arsenic is the grey element itself — the family's foundation, its chemistry genuinely acting on the skin at crude dose, as the whole history of arsenical dermatology proves. The proving gave the element the exfoliative-scaling portrait.
The traditional picture Classical sources
The inner state
- Anxiety about health. Worry over the skin, the scaling, the chronicity, worse at night.
- Irritability. Cross from the constant discomfort.
- Despondency. Gloomy in the chronic, scaling states.
The body
- Exfoliative, scaling skin. The keynote: the exfoliative dermatitis — the skin that scales and peels in sheets, the books' great use of the element.
- Arsenic-family skin. The scaling, peeling family portrait, the element's own shading.
- Worse cold damp and night. Wet weather and night aggravate.
- Better for warmth and rest. Warmth and rest ease the element's state.
Modalities (worse and better factors)
| Worse from ⬇ | Better from ⬇ |
|---|---|
| cold damp weather; night; scratching. | warmth; rest; quiet. |
Where it acts (organ affinities)
Skin (exfoliative, scaling), general vitality.
Where the classical picture comes from
The element's proving gave the exfoliative-scaling portrait; Ars met became the classical remedy of the skin that peels — the grey element of the family's foundation serving the scaling it has always caused.
The substance in real medicine Pharmacology
What this section is: the pharmacology and toxicology of the source substance. It is not clinical evidence that a homeopathic preparation of it treats any condition. What controlled trials do and do not show is set out on the Evidence page.
Arsenic's real skin chemistry is documented across two centuries — the arsenical dermatitis of the old toxicology, the family's genuine action on the skin, and the modern ATO leukemia drug the element's controlled chemistry became. The family's story is poison, pigment and chemotherapy in one element.
Look-alikes (how the classical authors told it apart)
| Remedy | Looks similar because… | Tells it apart because… |
|---|---|---|
| Arsenicum bromatum | The arsenic skin pair | Ars brom is the intensely itchy psoriasis; Ars met the exfoliative scaling of the same element. |
| Arsenicum album | The arsenic family | Ars alb is the anxious, chilly, sipping whole; Ars met the exfoliative skin of the element itself. |
| Kali arsenicosum | Arsenic salts | Kali ars serves the skin chapter of the same family. |
| Pix liquida | Chronic skin | Pix is the tar-painted eczema; Ars met the exfoliative scaling of the element. |