We have learned that homeopathic potentization involves ‘serial dilution’ and ‘succussion’ or violent shaking.
Nobody so far scientifically explain what is the exact role of ‘succussion’ or ‘violent shaking’ in deciding the final outcome during homeopathic potentization, or why simple progressive dilution is not enough in homeopathic drug preparation.
We cannot potentize a drug by doing serial dilution only, avoiding the process of succussion. You cannot also potentize a drug by succussion only, avoiding serial dilution. We all know dilution and succussion are essential steps in perfect method of potentization. But we need a scientifically viable explanation.
I am trying to answer this question from the MIT view that potentization is a process of ‘molecular imprinting’. For molecular imprinting to happen, drug molecules have to be allowed to form ‘hydration complexes’ or ‘host-guest complexes’ by interacting with the water-alcohol molecules used as imprinting medium. This is done by mixing drug substances with the vehicle and allowing to form a uniform solution.
For preparing molecular imprints, we have to remove the drug molecules lying entrapped in the medium as ‘guest-host complexes’, and make the hydration shells empty. Succussion or violent shaking plays its role at this stage.
Our scientific study regarding the role of ‘succussion’ or violent shaking of drug solutions in the process potentization should begin with a deep study of hydrodynamics of the phenomenon known as cavitation.
Cavitation is the formation of bubble-like gaps in a liquid. Mechanical forces, such as the moving blades of a ship’s propeller or sudden negative changes in pressure, can cause cavitation. Violent shaking of fluids may cause cavitation. Skimming or separating butter from milk by violent agitation is an example of practical utilization of cavitation.
Put it in a different way, cavitation is the formation of vapor cavities in a liquid – i.e. small liquid-free zones (“bubbles” or “voids”) – that are the consequence of cavitational forces acting upon the cavitational liquid. It usually occurs when a liquid is subjected to rapid changes of pressure that cause the formation of cavities where the pressure is relatively low. When subjected to higher pressure, the voids implode and can generate an intense shock wave.
Cavitation happening in solutions of very low dilutions due to violent shaking done during homeopathic potentization will result in formation of nanobubbles. Due to hydrodynamic forces, drug molecules entrapped in the hydration shells of of water-alcohol medium will be adsorbed into the microfilms of nanobubbles. When the shaking is stopped and solution put to rest, these nanobubbles, along with the drug molecules adsorbed into it, will rise to the top layer of the solution. It will result in the removal of drug molecules from ‘host-guest’ complexes, leaving the free hydration shells as ‘molecular imprints’ in the lower layers of the solution.
By this process, drug molecules begin to concentrate in top layers, and the number of drug molecules gradually decreases in the lower layers of the solution. The upper layer that contains the remaining drug molecules are transferred to next bottle for making next higher potencies, and will be utilized for molecular imprinting the next bottle. As the serial dilution goes higher to approach Avogadro limit, lower layers will become completely free of drug molecules, and the drug molecules collected in top layers get transferred to the next bottle. The lower portions, devoid of any drug molecules, will be saturated with ‘molecular imprints’ only.
Phenomena of ‘cavitation’ and ‘nanobubble formation’ due to succussion plays a decisive role in the production of molecular imprints during homeopathic potentization, by removing the drug molecules from the hydrogen-bonded supra-molecular ‘vehicle-drug’ or ‘guest-host’ complexes formed in the solution. As such, ‘succussion’ is an inevitable part of effective ‘molecular imprinting’.
According to my view, this is the exact mechanism by which molecular imprints are prepared by ‘serial dilution’ and ‘succussion’ involved in the process of homeopathic potentization.
This view is corroborated by the IIT-B studies which says they could detect molecules of original drug substances floating in the ‘top layers’ of highly diluted drugs, which could be explained only by the phenomenon of ‘cavitation’, ‘nanobubble formation’ and rising of drug molecules to top layers due to succussion. Same time, their conclusion that these ‘nanoparticles’ seen on the ‘top layers’ are the active principles of potentized drugs is untenable, since it is not the ‘top layers’ only, but the ‘whole’ dilution up to the last drop is found to be therapeutically effective. Such a therapeutic activity of ‘whole’ dilution, even without any chance of drug molecule remaining in it could be explained only by ‘molecular imprinting’ as proposed by MIT.
REDEFINING HOMEOPATHY 