Hawthorn - Organic
Hawthorn, Mayblossom, Whitehorn from the Rosaceae family. Historically crataegus comes from the Greek meaning "strength" which describes the strength of the wood from the tree. Its main area of action/use is with the cardiovascular system.
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Very effective for all problems associated with the heart and circulation. The beneficial effects of crateagus appear to be a result of the following actions:
• improving blood supply to the heart by dilating the coronary vessels.
• improvement of the metabolic processes in the heart, which results in an increase in the force of contraction of the heart muscle and elimination of some types of rhythm disturbances.
• inhibition of angiotensin-converting enzyme thus adding to vasodilation.
Crateagus has the unique ability to exert a normalising effect on heart function, working to correct apparently opposite disorders. Its actions:
• "Heart tonic" - generally restorative herb supporting and strengthening the heart while regulating circulation.
• "Circulatory stimulant" - generates warmth and improves peripheral circulation.
• "Diuretic" - removes excess fluid associated with heart disease.
• "Diaphoretic" - peripheral vasodilator.
• "Antispasmodic" - relaxes smooth muscle tissue of blood vessels.
• "Vascular tonic" - strengthens and tones arterial and venous vessels.
• "Hypotensive" - normalises blood pressure; decreases the hearts workload.
• "Antioxidant" - stabilisation of collagen by protecting against damage during inflammation, enhancing cross-linkage of collagen by preventing the release of inflammatory chemicals such as leukotrienes.
A meta-analysis published in January 2008: "Pittler M, Guo R, Ernst E, Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2008;(1):CD005312". Treatment ranged from 3-16 weeks and the main results shown were:
• Maximum workload (max energy output): Crateagus was significantly more beneficial than placebo.
• Exercixe tolerance (energy output per unit time): Significantly increased in the crateagus group.
• Pressure-heart rate product (indicates cardiac oxygen consumption): Showed a beneficial decrease with crateagus treatment.
• Symptoms (such as shortness of breath an fatigue): improved significantly with crateagus treatment as compared with placebo.
Showing overall that crateagus leaf and flower extract is beneficial for the treatment of chronic heart failure. Helping to:
• increase coronary blood flow.
• decrease blood pressure.
• increase force of contraction of the heart.
• increase rate of contraction.
• decrease rate of contraction (hence the normalising function).
• decrease arrhythmias and lower the potential for adrenalin to induce them.
• alter peripheral blood flow to increase flow to muscles and decrease peripheral vessel resistance.
• protect against dietary hypercholesterolaemia i.e. lowers serum (blood) cholesterol levels.
• reduce the damage due to hypoxia as in ischaemic heart disease.
A clinical trial in France: Hanus M, Lafon J, Mathieu M. Curr Med Res Opin 2004;20(1):63-71. was conducted to assess the benefits of Hawthorn, California Poppy and Magnesium vs Placebo in the treatment of "Mild to Moderate Anxiety disorders". Hamilton anxiety scores were between 16-28 and the patients were assessed at 7, 14, 30, 60 & 90 days.
The Hamilton anxiety scores fell more for the herbal treatment group than the placebo group, indicating clinical improvement and a positive result for long term of crateagus use with treatment for anxiety disorders.
Hawthorn/Crateagus has been shown to help with the following health conditions: Congestive heart failure, hypertension, hypotension, angina, heart arrythmias, tachycardia, atherosclerosis, atheroma, chilblains, intermittent claudication, irregular pulse, heart palpitations, poor circulation, ectopic beat, cardiac hypertrophy, valvular insufficiency, varicose veins, odema and dyspnoea of cardiac origin, myocardial weakness, arteriosclerosis, Buerger's disease, lung cancer, emphysema, longevity and nervous disorders i.e. stress, anxieties, anger.
Ingredients…
Organic Hawthorn Crateagus monogyna (Berries, flowers & leaf)
Container…
Available in black kraft bags.