Hawthorn is one of the most extensively used herbs as a tonic for the heart and the cardiovascular system and the most frequently prescribed by herbalists. Of all the plant kingdom it has the strongest affinity with the heart and with the instances of heart attack and hypertension increasing across the UK its good to know that nature has provided us with the natural alternative to beta blockers.
Hawthorn’s main action is to nourish and regenerate the heart. Although there are other herbal remedies that can be used to treat heart related conditions that may be viewed as have a stronger action, hawthorn is gentle enough to stimulate a constant steady improvement and return to health.
Therapeutically the whole of the hawthorn plant should be used when treating any cardiovascular disease. The individual components of the hawthorn plant have minimal impact on the heart and cardiovascular system but in combination they have definite affinities with this body system.
Following a double-blind trial in 1981 the results confirmed that hawthorn made a significant improvement to cardiovascular symptoms. The German Federal Ministry of Health studied the affects of this herb for 4 years and as a result hawthorn was awarded full recognition as a heart tonic across Europe.