Herbs & Herbal Remedies @ Green Papaya

Large amounts of hawthorn may cause sedation and/or a significant drop in blood pressure, possibly resulting in faintness.

The Food and Drug Administration lists hawthorn as an herb of “undefined safety.” This heart stimulant should be used only by those diagnosed with angina, cardiac arrhythmias, or congestive heart failure-and then only in consultation with a physician. Children and pregnant and nursing women should not use hawthorn.

Flowers in May

Hawthorn is a small deciduous tree with white bark, extremely hard wood, sharp thorns, clusters of white, aromatic flowers, and brilliant red fruits, which look like small apples. It blooms from April to June depending on latitude. In Britain blossoms appear in May, hence its other names-may, mayblossom, and mayflower.

With approximately 900 North American species, hawthorn is well adapted to many environments, from urban areas to windswept hillsides.

The tree tolerates a variety of soils but prefers somewhat alkaline, rich, moist loam. Some species prefer full sun. Others grow well in partial shade. Consult a nursery for the species best suited to your area.

Science appears to support what herbalists have long known. Hawthorn is a heart stimulant.

Heart Disease - Hawthorn may help the heart in several ways: It may open (dilate) the coronary arteries, improving the heart’s blood supply. It may increase the heart’s pumping force. It may eliminate some types of heart-rhythm disturbances (arrhythmias). And some evidence suggests it may help limit the amount of cholesterol deposited on artery walls.

In one trial, 120 people with congestive heart failure were given either tincture of hawthorn or a look-alike placebo. The hawthorn group experienced significant improvement in heart function and reported considerably less shortness of breath.

In Germany, where herbal medicine is more mainstream than it is in the United States, three dozen hawthorn-based heart medicines are available. According to German medical herbalist Rudolph Fritz Weiss, M.D., the herb “has become one of lour] most widely used heart remedies.” German physicians prescribe it to normalize heart rhythm, reduce the likelihood and severity of angina attacks, and prevent cardiac complications in elderly patients with influenza and pneumonia.

But Dr. Weiss warns hawthorn is no quick fix: “One cannot expect rapid improvement in cardiac function. [Hawthorn] has a long-term, sustained effect. … Hawthorn is not for cutting short angina attacks-nitroglycerine continues to be the drug of choice here …. [It] is safe for long-term use. With the usual therapeutic dosage, no toxic effects have been noted.”

Although hawthorn is considered safe and may be effective in the treatment of angina, congestive heart failure, and cardiac arrhythmias, these are serious, potentially life-threatening conditions requiring professional medical care. Consult your physician if you’d like to use hawthorn as part of your overall treatment plan.

Rx for Hawthorn

German physicians prescribe I teaspoon of hawthorn tincture upon waking and before bed for periods of up to several weeks. To mask its bitter taste, mix it with sugar, honey, or lemon, or mix it into an herbal beverage blend.

For an infusion, herbalists recommend using 2 teaspoons of crushed leaves or fruits per cup of boiling water. Steep 20 minutes. Drink up to 2 cups a day.

Mayflower for Heart Disease

Family: Rosaceae; (includes Rose, Peach, Almond, Apple, Strawberry)

Genus and Species: Crataegus Oxyacantha

Also known as: Hawthorne , Haw, May, Mayblossom, Mayflower

Parts used: Flower, leaves, fruit

Every American schoolchild learns the Pilgrims’ ship was the Mayflower. But few, if any, know the name refers to hawthorn, a tree known for centuries as a heart tonic and today widely used in Europe as a treatment for heart disease.

Heart disease is our leading cause of death, yet hawthorn has been virtually ignored on this side of the Atlantic. Even herb conservative Varro Tyler, Ph.D., calls hawthorn “valuable … a relatively harmless heart tonic which … yields good results.”

Crown of Thorns

Hawthorn was well known in the ancient world, but not as a medicine. The Greeks and Romans linked it to hope, marriage, and fertility. Greek bridesmaids wore fragrant hawthorn blossoms, and brides carried a bough. The Romans placed hawthorn leaves in babies’ cradles to ward off evil spirits.

Christianity changed hawthorn’s image dramatically.

Christ’s crown of thorns was reputedly made of hawthorn, and as a result, it became a symbol of bad luck and death.

The hawthorn/death association was bolstered by the unpleasant aroma of some European species’ flowers. These trees are pollinated by carrion-eating insects, and to attract them, their flowers emit the odor of rotting meat. A similar odor was associated with bubonic plague. (Because the disease killed so many so quickly, bodies often remained unburied for quite a while.) As a result, hawthorn was associated with plague.

Tonic for the Heart

Over the centuries, hawthorn shed its bad reputation and came to be used medicinally. Seventeenth-century English herbalist Nicholas Culpeper praised it as “a singular remedy for the stone [kidney stones l, and no less effectual for dropsy [congestive heart failure].”

American pioneers also used the plant for heart problems.

The 19th-century Eclectics prescribed it for the severe chest pain known as angina, and congestive heart failure (a serious heart problem with fluid buildup and shortness of breath after minor physical activity).

Modern herbals echo this advice. Most would agree with David Hoffmann’s Holistic Herbal: “Hawthorn [is] one of the best tonic remedies for the heart …. It may be used safely in long-term treatment for heart weakness or failure … palpitations … angina pectoris … and high blood pressure.”

Herbalists also suggest it for kidney stones and as a sedative for chronic insomnia.