# Amber

**Succinum*; Greek *ēlektron**

**Known today as.** Fossil tree resin, chiefly from the Baltic coast.

Kind: Resin & Wood

> **Caution.** Amber necklaces are unsafe for infants.

## What was it used for?

Its oil and salt against the falling sickness and the womb; worn as beads against sore throats and teething.

## What does modern science say?

Its oil has no proven effect; amber teething necklaces are a choking and strangling hazard, and the FDA warned against them in 2018.

## Pharmacognosy and toxicology

- **succinic acid**: 3–8 per cent of Baltic amber

**Mechanism.** None: the succinic acid in amber is not released by the warmth of a child’s neck, and if it were, succinate is an ordinary metabolite of every cell.

**Dose.** The amber teething necklaces sold to parents have strangled infants; the FDA warned in 2018.

**Standing.** No medical use; sold as a teething remedy without evidence.

## What lore surrounds it?

Rubbed, it draws straws to itself; the Greek word for it, *ēlektron*, gave us “electricity.”

## What did the older authorities say?

**Pliny.** Devotes pages to amber, its origin in pine sap, and the absurd fables told of it.

## Sources

- Pliny, *Natural History* XXXVII.
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration (2018). “FDA warns about safety risks of teething necklaces, bracelets, and other jewelry.”

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*Amber.* In *Materia Medica*, edited by B. C. P. Statema. Version 1, revised 2026-09-25. The Thinking Press. https://thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/amber

Historical description, not medical advice.