Herbs for the Heart: Hawthorn Part 2
“Hawthorn may well be the herb supreme for the heart, and a healthy heart is essential to a long and productive life.” - Rosemary Gladstar
Pink hawthorn blossoms - London 2018
Welcome back for Part 2 of Herbs for the Heart on the beautiful tree Hawthorn.
Click here for part 1 if you missed it
Before we get straight into how Hawthorn (the wise thorny hedge) can support us in our physical heart space, here’s a short video of my hawthorn foraging adventures in England.
Heart medicine offering - physical
Hawthorn is a classic & highly valued heart tonic remedy in Western Herbalism & other herbal traditions too (this is well deserved as you will see!), known for its amazing ability to balance the heart in whatever direction is needed for the individual. This is what makes plants like Hawthorn so special.
Hawthorn is incredibly intelligent because it has the ability to stimulate & strengthen a weak heart and also reduce & relax hyperactive & strained heart states, depending on the need. Hawthorn is a herbal remedy that can be used to support heart weakness, palpitations, high blood pressure, angina and anxiety to name a few applications.
Hawthorn is part of the divine rose family, and is known as ‘trophorestorative’ - this means that a plant has a healing and restorative action on a specific organ or tissue through nourishment. Hawthorn’s restorative action specifically focuses on the heart and circulatory system, by bringing regularity and integrity into the tissues.
In Europe, the fruit, leaves, and flowers of the plant were traditionally employed in the treatment of heart problems because of their antispasmodic, cardiotonic, hypotensive, and anti-atherosclerotic effects.
Hawthorn has a long history of traditional use and an ever expanding body of research. I suggest checking out Medical herbalist Richard Whelan’s article on Hawthorn, he has a pdf with 120 published studies and articles on Hawthorn.
Hawthorn berries growing alongside an english canal
Hawthorn’s Actions: Anti-spasmodic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, vasodilator, astringent, hypotensive, cardiotonic, blood tonic & nervine
Hawthorn’s Heart Uses:
strengthens capillaries
strengthens the walls of larger blood vessels
strengthens the physical heart (muscle)
strengthens muscular heart contractions
regulates the heart beat
normalises high and low blood pressure
Like all plants, Hawthorn is made up of a complex array of constituents including vitamin C, carotenoids & polyphenols. The antioxidant and anti-inflammatory phytochemicals collectively help to prevent free radicals from damaging our healthy cells and causing illness and balance inflammatory pathways in the body.
Bioflavonoids, or flavonoids, are a large class of powerful phytochemicals (antioxidants) found in plants, including Hawthorn, which carry out key functions in the plant, such as attracting pollinating insects, fighting environmental stresses and modulating cell growth.1
Studies have shown that when we consume bioflavonoids, they can improve microcirculation, capillary flow and vascular tone, all of which are key actions in the protecting the heart/cardiovascular system.2
Many people know about the antioxidants/bioflavonoids in red wine called polyphenols. These antioxidants in red wine help protect the lining of blood vessels in the heart (and help preserve the wine). The antioxidants in the Hawthorn plant extracts also help protect the lining of the blood vessels, making it a great remedy to add into your daily life.
Hawthorn ripening in late summer
'A tonic in the true sense, Hawthorn can be considered a specific remedy for most cardiovascular disease” - David Hoffmann
The astringent properties (the tannins) & trophorestorative actions of hawthorn, help with restoring, toning and protecting the heart & cardiovascular tissue.
The ruby red hawthorn berries are building and nourishing to the blood and optimising to the cardiovascular system including helping maintain a healthy blood pressure.
Hawthorn helps to regulate the heartbeat and blood pressure by promoting the parasympathetic nervous system, this is our rest and digest state. When we are in parasympathetic arousal, our endogenous self-healing mechanisms are activated.
Hawthorn berries, leaves, and flowers also have a tonic nervine effect. A nervine is a plant remedy that has a beneficial effect upon the nervous system. Dr. Marisa Marciano says, “Nervine Tonics (or trophorestoratives) are perhaps the most important contribution herbal medicine can make in the whole area of stress & anxiety, and in strengthening & “feeding” the nervous system. In cases of nervous debility, the nervine tonics strengthen and restore the tissues directly.”3
Hawthorn is a great plant remedy to relieve anxiety4 (especially related to the heart) and resulting palpitations or raised blood pressure.
Hawthorn can also be used for preventing heart & circulatory problems. We don’t have to wait until we are unwell to take herbal medicine. Herbal Medicine shines best as preventative medicine! Hawthorn would be a great consideration as a heart tonic preventative for many people over 45 years old.
I find Hawthorn to be a powerful medicine for women, especially in their ‘fulfillment phase’ (menopause and beyond). Women in particular, lead their lives from their heart space, due to their natural nurturing qualities, and the need to care for the scared heart space (cardiac system) is more than ever very important.
Hawthorn blossoms & leaves, Tauranga NZ
Safety
Hawthorn is generally considered very safe. A few points to keep in mind:
Check with your Medical doctor if you are taking heart medication before taking hawthorn.
Hawthorn is not for acute illnesses. Use your common sense :)
Some say the seeds may be toxic because of trace amounts of cyanogenic glycosides, amygdalin. Amygdalin is a naturally occurring chemical compound found in many plants, most notably in the seeds (kernels) of apricots, bitter almonds, apples, peaches, cherries and plums.
There is no evidence that hawthorn has harmful effects in pregnancy, although such evidence is limited. Hawthorn use during pregnancy and lactation should be undertaken with expert herbal advice.5
How to use Hawthorne to support your Heart
In order to receive Hawthorn’s heart healing benefits, remember to take your time with this beautiful plant. Hawthorn is a tonic herb and should be used over a period of time to be effective. Consider using a Hawthorn remedy for at least 3 months.
The berries, leaves and flowers may all be included in herbal preparations such as decoctions, tinctures, teas, and syrups. Here’s an overnight hawthorn infusion recipe from The Herbal Academy, to infuse Hawthorn’s heart-healthy benefits into your beautiful body! Look for organically cultivated or sustainability wild crafted hawthorn.
Overnight Hawthorn Infusion
Ingredients
1 tablespoon hawthorn (Crataegus spp.) leaf
1 tablespoon hawthorn (Crataegus spp.) flower
1 tablespoon hawthorn (Crataegus spp.) berry
600ml glass jar
600ml spring/filtered water
Directions
Add hawthorn leaf, flower, and berry to glass jar.
Pour just-boiled water over the herb, filling the jar within 1 inch of the top, and screw on the lid.
Let infusion sit overnight or for at least 10 hours.
Strain in the morning to separate hawthorn from infused water.
Enjoy throughout the day at room temperature or warm to taste.
A great idea from Glennie Kindred, author of Scared Earth Celebrations, is to burn the dried berries as incense to help release blocked energy and open the heart to receiving joy again. This is something I have yet to try myself, but love this idea of using hawthorn as smoke (air) medicine.
My personal favourite way to harness Hawthorn’s medicinal effects is with a Hawthorn Elixir. Not only is the elixir delicious, but it’s enhance with aromatic and circulatory stimulant herbs to magnify the effects!
Subscribed
Hawthorn Brandy Elixir
Hawthorn Berry Elixir for the Heart
Ingredients
2 cups fresh hawthorn berries (or 1 cups dried organic hawthorn berries)
1/2 Tbsp. organic cardamom pods
2-3 organic star anise
3cm knob of organic fresh ginger or 1 Tbsp. organic dried ginger
1 organic vanilla bean (optional but delicious)
1 organic Cassia cinnamon stick
Brandy to cover (approx. 800 mls)
Directions
Put Hawthorn berries and spices into a 1 litre glass jar.
Pour brandy into jar.
Infuse for 4 to 6 weeks (or until the winter solstice, if you're harvesting in autumn).
Shake daily and send some love!
Strain into another jar through a nut mylk bag or muslin cloth
Stir in the raw honey until dissolved. Use more or less, depending on how sweet you want elixir.
Decant elixir into amber bottles + label with ingredients and date
Store in a cool dark place
Take 1 tsp per day to nourish your heart or whenever you feel you need some extra joy and strength infused into your heart space.
Thanks so much for being here. I hope you’ve enjoyed this article! Like all plants, Hawthorn has so much magic & medicine and in this post I’ve mainly focused on the heart healing benefits.