Educational information, not medical advice — ask your doctor or midwife.
Calcarea iodata is a single homeopathic remedy. It is made from calcium iodide (Latin: Calcii iodidum), a salt of calcium and iodine. Homeopaths have long given it for large tonsils and adenoids, swollen neck glands, and a swollen thyroid gland.
The remedy is made by diluting the salt again and again, with hard shaking at each step. At 30C, the dilution is so extreme that essentially none of the starting salt is left. Low strengths such as 3X or 6X are different, and can still hold a small amount of real iodine.
Here is the short verdict. Trials in people do not show that homeopathic dilutions work better than placebo (a dummy pill). Long use inside a tradition is not proof that a remedy works, and this page reports both axes on their own.
Homeopathy rests on the idea that a tiny dose can ease symptoms that a big dose would cause. Makers dilute and shake the remedy many times over. They say this leaves a kind of imprint in the water or the sugar pellet.
There is no known way for that to act on the body. At 30C, no molecules of the starting salt remain. Any change you notice is most likely placebo, natural healing, or the passing of time.
Low strengths work on a different footing. A 3X or 6X dose can still carry real iodine. Iodine does act on the thyroid, the gland in your neck that sets your body's pace.
You will most often find it as small sugar pellets that melt under the tongue. Tablets and liquid drops are also sold.
Common strengths are 3X, 6X, 12C, 30C and 200C. The X and C numbers tell you how many times it was diluted. A higher number means a weaker dilution of the starting salt, not a stronger drug.
Some products blend it with other remedies. This page covers the single remedy only.
Calcarea iodata entered homeopathic practice in the 1800s. Writers of that era listed it for children with large tonsils and adenoids, for swollen glands in the neck, and for a swollen thyroid.
It appears in classic homeopathic materia medica texts, such as those of William Boericke. It has stayed a minor but named remedy in that one tradition ever since.
It has no record of use in other healing traditions.
See a doctor soon if a lump in your neck or breast is new, hard, or growing. Also book a visit if swollen glands last more than three weeks.
Get urgent care for a sore throat with high fever, drooling, or trouble swallowing. Do the same for a child who snores badly, stops breathing in sleep, or gasps at night.
Call your doctor if you feel your heart race, lose weight without trying, feel very hot or very cold, or feel worn out. These can be signs of a thyroid problem that needs testing.
Evidence grades and traditional-use labels are explained in our methodology. Nothing here is medical advice.
Reviewed by the HealisticMD editorial team How we grade evidence →
The published evidence for Calcarea iodata is weak or absent. That usually means no controlled trial has tested it, not that a trial found it ineffective — the two are different, and we grade only what has been published.
What it is typically used for, usual dose, cautions, and the study behind it where real trial data exists.
One email with the summary. We'll also send a short weekly evidence update — unsubscribe any time.
