First Aid with Homeopathy: The Ultimate Medical Guide for Travelers Athletes. Also Covering Work-Related Accidents Major Disasters by Manuel Mateu Ratera

“Intellectuals solve problems, geniuses avoid them.”

–Albert Einstein

And so begins Dr. Manuel Mateu Ratera's opus, First Aid with Homeopathy.

Manuel Mateu Ratera was a Barcelona homeopathic physician who was born in 1951. He was a researcher, emergency room physician, teacher and mentor to many, homeopathic clinician, and author of an exhaustive and authoritative text, First Aid with Homeopathy: The Ultimate Medical Guide for Travelers and Athletes. Also Covering Work-Related Accidents and Major Disasters (2014; 1st English ed. 2016; 2nd 2020). Ratera passed the threshold on July 28, 2024.

Before the introductory chapters of this book, Ratera, in his Preface, answered a question posed to him by his daughter, Celia, after he had completed this book (p. xxi): “Why are you interested in writing a book about first aid?”

The stimulus for writing his opus came with an answer in two parts. The first was his association with his mentor Dr. Pietro Bassi, an expert in high-altitude medicine or what some refer to as Mountain Medicine. Bassi taught Manuel the essentials of traumatology, resuscitation, and rescue techniques applicable to mountain trekking and road accidents. The other explanation seems to be, for want of a better term, rooted in guilt—perhaps. Let me explain.

Ratera and others were climbing to the:

“…top of Pedraforca [an 8,000 “twin peak in Catalonia, a northeastern state of Spain]”, by the Verdet, with a group of family and friends, I took a detour in the final portion of the climb and kept on going through a very steep path that required climbing using my hands. Several youngsters followed me; they considered this path fun and daring, and apparently without danger -among them was Oriol. I did not discourage them, on the contrary, I felt flattered, and we kept on going. Oriol's father, Lluis, had been my guide in Pedraforca when I was fifteen years old. We were climbing a relatively easy rocky part, when a block of rock detached from the mountain and Oriol fell. We were free climbing and were not using ropes; a thoughtless act. [the child was rescued and Manuel told his daughter, “I think this book was born from my unconscious as a way to overcome accidents, to teach others to avoid them, and tackle the assistance in accidents successfully.”].

This was a painful lesson which Manuel learned as he admitted his recklessness and irresponsible behavior that affected others: “…anyone of us can be the cause of accidents, which can deeply affect others.”

This book was written by an exacting professional with assistance from an international group of some 30 colleagues. It operates on a high level and serves well the professional and layperson alike. It includes a 40-page introduction to homeopathy and 60 pages devoted to resuscitation and vital emergencies, followed by approximately 500 pages covering accidents (traumatisms; venomous bites/stings—rabies; thermal, chemical, and radiation injuries; accidents from decompression; asphyxiation and intoxication from gases; food and toxic product poisoning; motion sickness/jet lag; emotional traumas; and prophylaxis for travelers—infectious disease prevention) and information on first-aid kits before ending with a good materia medica of some 200 remedies in 250 pages. There is an extensive 22-page bibliography and two indices (remedy and subject) before this very well-produced book comes to its final 960th page! It is a hardback slightly larger than Boericke's Materia Medica. A ribbon place marker is thoughtfully included.

Ratera took great care in making this work accurate and an all-encompassing, profound work about first-aid, combining homeopathy and acupuncture with conventional medical care, incorporating the best of all medical aspects.

Two of his colleagues offered their comments that were made shortly after his death in July of 2024.

“In memory of Dr. Manel Mateu I would highlight his closeness and his selfless attitude in helping anyone who asked him for advice, which he did with me from the first day we met in an altruistic way Then I bought his book “First Aid with Homeopathy” and discovered great and efficient indications to control keloids, joint problems, bites and burns as I had never seen so concise and well explained. A summarized medical material, easy to read and prioritizing the indications making the specificity of each remedy very clear, I had his book at the head of my bed and I was hooked on reading it daily until I read it.”

–Dr. med. vet. Eduardo Vila de Juan

“First Aid with Homeopathy” (with English translation) by Dr. Manuel Mateu is one of the best books, nationally and internationally, in its field. He asked me for [to write] a chapter because he told me that the word and communication was very important (I think with great generosity on his part) and then I helped as much as I could, in its final format. He was very satisfied with it. He changed it, as always, a thousand times. Students, doctors, veterinarians, pharmacists, the public and friends of homeopathy, keep Manel's book of first aid in your homes. I'm sure you'll thank me for it.

“Right now I have it here with me, I touch it once again, and it makes me very sad but, at the same time, relieved, because I know that there, in this book and in his translations of other books and his many articles, his spirit, his lucidity and his smile on the back cover will endure.”

–Dr. Gonzalo Fernández-Quiroga

Let this review end with some information on one of Ratera's favorite subjects, mountain medicine, which occurs in the 25-page Subchapter 4, “Accidents from Decompression.” It contains several sections: “Mountain Sickness”; “Symptoms and Characteristics of Mountain Sickness”; “Prevention of Acute Mountain Sickness”; “First Aid for Mountain Sickness”; “Clinical Study with Coca”; and, finally, “Severe Cases: High Altitude Pulmonary and Cerebral Edema (HAPE, HACE).” It deals with allopathic emergency measures and conventional medications as well as homeopathic remedies. Manuel et al found the following useful: Ars. alb., Carbo veg., Cactus, Digitalis, Coca, and Lachesis. Antimonium tart. and Ammon. carb. are “particularly suitable in certain forms of pulmonary oedema, together with those already described.”

For me, the “Clinical Study with Coca” section proved fascinating as it contains numerous referrals to Coca (Erythroxylon coca) as well as several other remedies and health preserving measures.

This section initially deals with the 1988 research of Ratera and Anton Rane, an expert in medical traumatology and mountaineering. Their study was meant to assess the effects of coca in mountain sickness. The results were positive for homeopathy and published in two articles, “Botiquin homepatica de primeras curas en la Expedicion Catalana al Everest” (1988) and “Estudio a doble ciego de los efectos de la Coca en el Mal de Montana” (1989), in successive issues of Jornadas de Medicina de Montana, Vols. IX and X. Ratera wrote a book Everest. El repte d'un somni (Everest. The Challenge of a Dream), which was published in 1984 and is not available in the English language. It concerns the experiences of the first Catalan expedition to Mt. Everest, which was organized by the Centre d'Excursionista de Catalunya and Club Alpí Català. Manuel also finished his medical thesis, Contribucio a l'estudi de la patologia d'alta muntanya, in 1993.

Several other clinical experiences are documented and this material begins with the expedition of Doug Scott, a noted British climber. On the recommendation of John Ainsworth, the pharmacist and owner of Ainsworth's Homeopathic Pharmacy (England), Scott took and found several remedies of use, particularly Belladonna, Glonoinum, Coca, Ars. alb., and Arnica (all in 30C potency).

“In 1984, Emlyn Thomas, after reading the article by Doug Scott on the use of homeopathic remedies in high mountains, used Coca to treat her own symptoms of mountain sickness during the ascent to Srikanta in the Garwhal Himalayas with good results:

“I took a good supply of Coca 30C for altitude problems, Arnica 10M for the possibility of a traumatic accident, and Arsenicum album for tropical dysentery. It seemed a very small kit for an adventure so big.

“In Srikanta, instead of Diamox (Edemox -acetazolamide), I took Coca 30C. When I had a headache, or when I could not sleep I took Coca, and repeated it one day I started having a bad cough. Each time I took it, the symptoms disappeared almost immediately. It helped me sleep. It was also more effective. I recommend to all those who will make an ascent to the Alps, above 3,000 metres, to take Coca in your medicine kit.

“I experienced a dramatic effect with Coca when climbing to the Srikanta. It was a terrible burden. A drop of more than 700 metres of a grassy slope, followed by 500 metres from a spring full of logs and loose rocks. I was breathing with great difficulty, often about six breaths at each step, and I was exhausted. So, I took Coca and two doses of Arnica 30C, after which I could continue the ascent without difficulty. I know purists will say that it is wrong to take two remedies at once, but it certainly worked.” (Thomas, 1986; “Homoeopathy at altitude,” Homoeopath, Winter, 6:2, pp. 103-6, 1986).

–pp. 457–458

Several other clinical cases are presented along with a very useful differential materia medica.

Later in this, of what I have found to be an essential text, appears material on remedies, including Coca, for jet lag:

“Coca: take a dose of 30C before departure, one dose during the flight, and upon arrival, a dose every 3-4 hours during the day.

“A great remedy for jet lag, for it combines the effects of hypoxia with exhaustion. A great stimulant in situations where one experiences tiredness, weakness, headache, and breathlessness at the slightest effort. Restless sleep. It is the first remedy to recommend for jet lag. Especially for athletes and dancers who travel often and have to be able to perform fully.”

–p. 519

Later still, in the section Emotional Traumas, one finds a further subsection dealing with “ailments from anticipation.” Here a differential materia medica is added ending with advice from Rajan Sankaran:

“It is the remedy for climbers, people to climb high peaks, and are faced with difficult challenges. In hard-working and active people, entrepreneurs who set themselves major goals, which leads to a feeling of great isolation. Coca symptoms are extreme fatigue on exertion, exhaustion, headache, and fear of falling, of failure. These patients can conceal their extreme shyness and shame, alternating with states of exhaustion, behind great activity (Sankaran, 1997”."

–p. 550

This comprehensive text will have no problem pleasing the most discriminating reader and, in the case of Coca, read and climb on!

Note

1. Collins also served as the editor of this work and in an e-mail dated August 28, 2024, she related:

“Manel asked me to write the forward, we were friends and I have always liked his work. He also asked me to go through his book before publishing it, and I asked if I could add a few notes from my own experience, and update some of the materia medica to include the newer concepts of the plant families by Jan Scholten, which he kindly accepted.”

As I was writing his obituary and then this book review, she offered the following:

“I met Manel several times in France, sometimes in Toulouse when he came to our study group, and once when he participated in a seminar on the Actinides. He also came a few times to our home, and invited me to teach Jan Scholten's Plant Theory in Barcelona, so I had the great pleasure of staying at his home and meeting his wife and his sons…I have always had a great respect for Manel, both for his devotion to homeopathy and for his personal approach to life, trying to be as sincere as possible. I will miss him as a dear friend and colleague.”

Mateu Ratera M. First Aid with Homeopathy: The Ultimate Medical Guide for Travelers and Athletes. Also Covering Work-Related Accidents and Major Disasters. Translated from Spanish by Sandra Benassini. Available in German. Kandern, Germany: Narayana Verlag; 2020. 960 pages. Hardback; 20.3 × 12.5 × 3.75 cm (8” × 5” × 1.5”). US$40. ISBN: 9783955820923. Foreword by Deborah Collins. Available at: www.narayana-verlag.com.

Publication History

Article published online:
04 December 2024