Paraffinum
Made from paraffin — the white wax of the modern world's candles and jars, a genuine laxative of the old and living pharmacy, and the classical remedy of the elderly constipation.
The whole picture, in one breath
Think of a bowel bound in old age: the chronic constipation of the elderly of the books, the abdominal tumours of the old chapter, the heavy, bound frame, and the white wax of the modern world's jars. The elderly-bound wax: that is Paraffinum.
The substance, in plain words
Paraffin is the white wax of the modern world's candles and jars — a genuine, living laxative of the pharmacy, liquid paraffin the lubricant of the old and living dispensary, its chemistry genuinely moving the bound bowel. The proving gave the wax the elderly-bound portrait.
The traditional picture Classical sources
The inner state
- Anxiety about health. Worry over the bowels, the binding, the chronicity, worse at night.
- Irritability. Cross from the constant, bound discomfort.
- Despondency. Gloomy in the chronic states.
The body
- Constipation of the elderly. The keynote: the chronic, obstinate constipation of the old and bound — the books' great use of the wax.
- Abdominal tumours of the old chapter. The books' grave association — the abdominal swellings and tumours of the same chapter.
- Heavy, bound frame. The heavy, sluggish, bound constitution of the proving.
- Worse cold damp and morning. Wet weather and the waking hours aggravate.
- Better for the wax and warmth. The lubricant wax and warmth ease the bound state.
Modalities (worse and better factors)
| Worse from ⬇ | Better from ⬇ |
|---|---|
| cold damp weather; morning; sedentary habits; rich food. | the lubricant wax; warmth; motion. |
Where it acts (organ affinities)
Bowels (chronic constipation), abdomen, general vitality.
Where the classical picture comes from
The white wax's proving gave the elderly-bound portrait; Paraffinum became the classical remedy of the chronic, obstinate constipation — the candle wax serving the bowels its liquid form lubricated.
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.
Paraffin is genuinely a living laxative: liquid paraffin lubricated the bound bowels of the twentieth century and remains in the dispensary's memory, its chemistry honestly moving what it coats. The constipation it portrayed is now modern bowel medicine; the wax's career is the history of the lubricant era.
Look-alikes (how the classical authors told it apart)
| Remedy | Looks similar because… | Tells it apart because… |
|---|---|---|
| Alumina | Constipation without urging | Alumina's is dry and urging-less; Paraffinum's the elderly, lubricant chapter. |
| Rhamnus frangula | The anthraquinone laxatives | Frangula is the anthraquinone purgative; Paraffinum the lubricant of the same shelf. |
| Opium | Constipation and dullness | Opium's is the dark, bound, drowsy one; Paraffinum's the lubricant of the elderly. |
| Collinsonia canadensis | Piles with constipation | Collinsonia's piles alternate with the bowels; Paraffinum's the bound chapter itself. |