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Cholesterinum

Traditionally used for: People already working with a homeopath who want the traditional remedy for gallbladder complaints, alongside proper medical care.

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What is Cholesterinum? Cholesterinum is a homeopathic remedy. It is made from cholesterol taken from animal bile or gallstones. Bile is the fluid your liver makes to help you digest fat. Homeopaths give it mainly for gallstone pain, liver complaints and high cholesterol. It is a single remedy, not a mix of several. The remedy is diluted again and again. This is called serial dilution. At the common 30C strength, essentially none of the starting material is left. In trials, homeopathic remedies have not done better than placebo (a dummy pill). Long use inside a tradition is not proof that something works. We make that point once here and do not repeat it below. How does Cholesterinum work? There is no known way this remedy could act on your body. Homeopathy rests on two old ideas. The first is that "like cures like". The second is that shaking a dilution makes it act more strongly, not more weakly. Neither idea fits what we know about chemistry. At 30C there is no cholesterol left to act on your liver or your bile. People do sometimes feel better while taking it. Time, rest, a calm talk with a practitioner and placebo effects explain that far better than the pellets do. What forms does Cholesterinum come in? Cholesterinum comes as small sugar pellets, liquid drops or tablets. Common strengths are 6C, 12C, 30C and 200C. The "C" means the mix was cut 1 part in 100 at each step. A higher number means more dilution steps, not more material. Very low strengths such as 1X or 3X may still hold a trace of cholesterol. Liquid drops are usually made with alcohol. Pellets are usually sugar, and tablets often contain lactose (milk sugar). Where it comes from: Cholesterinum entered homeopathy in the late 1800s. The English homeopath James Compton Burnett used it for gallstone pain and liver trouble. Later homeopaths kept it for the same complaints. It stays a minor remedy. It is not one of the tradition's polychrests, the small set of remedies used most often.

Helps

What does Cholesterinum help with? Gallstone pain (biliary colic): This is the classic homeopathic use, going back to Burnett. No human trial has tested Cholesterinum for it. Gallstone attacks can settle on their own, which makes any remedy look useful. Severe or repeated attacks need a doctor, not pellets. General liver and gallbladder discomfort: Homeopathic texts list it for a heavy, sore feeling under the right ribs. That is traditional practice only. There is no laboratory or human evidence that a 30C dilution changes liver function. High blood cholesterol: Some practitioners give it for raised cholesterol on the "like cures like" idea. No trial supports this. High cholesterol has no symptoms, so you cannot judge it by feel. Keep taking any medicine your doctor prescribed and keep getting blood tests. Nausea and fullness after fatty meals: Used traditionally for queasiness after rich food. Evidence is limited to homeopathic case reports and repertories, which are not trials. Ongoing symptoms after eating deserve a proper check.

Cholesterinum

Quick Facts

  • What it is: A homeopathic remedy made from cholesterol taken from animal bile or gallstones, then diluted until essentially nothing remains.
  • Main uses: Gallstone pain, Liver and gallbladder discomfort, High blood cholesterol, Queasiness after fatty food
  • Best for: People already working with a homeopath who want the traditional remedy for gallbladder complaints, alongside proper medical care
  • Active ingredients: Cholesterol from animal bile or gallstones (absent at 30C)
  • Forms: Sugar pellets, Liquid drops (usually alcohol-based), Tablets
  • Time to effect: Tradition says hours to days; no trial has measured it.
  • Side effects: Almost none expected at 30C; the main risk is delaying real treatment.
  • Pregnancy & breastfeeding: Avoid in pregnancy and while breastfeeding.

Educational information, not medical advice — ask your doctor or midwife.

What is Cholesterinum?

Cholesterinum is a homeopathic remedy. It is made from cholesterol taken from animal bile or gallstones. Bile is the fluid your liver makes to help you digest fat.

Homeopaths give it mainly for gallstone pain, liver complaints and high cholesterol. It is a single remedy, not a mix of several.

The remedy is diluted again and again. This is called serial dilution. At the common 30C strength, essentially none of the starting material is left.

In trials, homeopathic remedies have not done better than placebo (a dummy pill). Long use inside a tradition is not proof that something works. We make that point once here and do not repeat it below.

How does Cholesterinum work?

There is no known way this remedy could act on your body.

Homeopathy rests on two old ideas. The first is that "like cures like". The second is that shaking a dilution makes it act more strongly, not more weakly.

Neither idea fits what we know about chemistry. At 30C there is no cholesterol left to act on your liver or your bile.

People do sometimes feel better while taking it. Time, rest, a calm talk with a practitioner and placebo effects explain that far better than the pellets do.

What forms does Cholesterinum come in?

Cholesterinum comes as small sugar pellets, liquid drops or tablets.

Common strengths are 6C, 12C, 30C and 200C. The "C" means the mix was cut 1 part in 100 at each step. A higher number means more dilution steps, not more material.

Very low strengths such as 1X or 3X may still hold a trace of cholesterol. Liquid drops are usually made with alcohol. Pellets are usually sugar, and tablets often contain lactose (milk sugar).

Where it comes from:

Cholesterinum entered homeopathy in the late 1800s. The English homeopath James Compton Burnett used it for gallstone pain and liver trouble. Later homeopaths kept it for the same complaints.

It stays a minor remedy. It is not one of the tradition's polychrests, the small set of remedies used most often.

Who should avoid Cholesterinum?

  • Do not use if you have sudden severe pain in your upper right belly, fever, or yellow skin or eyes — get medical help straight away instead
  • Do not use if you are replacing or delaying treatment your doctor has advised for gallstones, liver disease or high cholesterol
  • Do not use if you have stopped a prescribed medicine, such as a statin, in order to try it
  • Do not use if you are taking disulfiram or metronidazole and the product is alcohol-based drops
  • Do not use if you are avoiding alcohol for recovery, pregnancy or religious reasons and only drops are available
  • Do not use if you avoid animal-derived products, since the source material is animal bile or gallstones
  • Do not use if you are allergic to lactose (milk sugar) and the tablets contain it
  • Do not use if you are giving it to a baby or young child without a doctor's advice
  • Do not use if you are pregnant or breastfeeding without checking with your doctor or midwife first

When should you see a doctor?

See a doctor the same day if you have belly pain that lasts more than a few hours, fever with chills, vomiting you cannot stop, or yellow skin or eyes. Call emergency services for severe pain with a fast heartbeat or confusion. Book a normal appointment if your symptoms keep coming back, if you have lost weight without trying, or if your cholesterol is high — it causes no symptoms, so it needs a blood test rather than a remedy.

Evidence grades and traditional-use labels are explained in our methodology. Nothing here is medical advice.

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