The flowering period of hawthorn is from May to June, and the mature fruit period is from September to October.

Extended information:

Hawthorn (Crataegus pinnatifida Bunge), also known as mountain fruit and mountain red, is a deciduous tree in the Rosaceae family, up to 6 meters high.

Vitexin, a flavonoid compound in hawthorn, is a drug with strong anti-cancer effects. Its extract has a certain effect on inhibiting the growth, proliferation, infiltration and metastasis of cancer cells in the body.

It is distributed in Shandong, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Henan, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Liaoning, Jilin, Heilongjiang, Inner Mongolia, Hebei and other places. Drupes are fruits with hard cores, thin pulp, and slightly sour taste. The fruit can be eaten raw or made into preserved fruit cake, and can be used as medicine after drying. It is a unique tree species in China that can be used both as medicine and fruit. It has the effects of lowering blood lipids, blood pressure, strengthening the heart, and anti-arrhythmia. It is also good at strengthening the spleen, appetizing, and digesting food. , a good medicine for promoting blood circulation and reducing phlegm, and has good curative effect on chest, diaphragm and spleen fullness, hernia, blood stasis, amenorrhea and other diseases.

Efficacy and role

1. Aids digestion

Hawthorn contains a variety of organic acids. After oral administration, it enhances the acidity of gastric juice, increases pepsin activity, and promotes protein digestion; hawthorn is sour, stimulating the gastric mucosa and promoting gastric juice secretion; hawthorn contains lipase, which can promote the digestion of fat; hawthorn contains vitamin C and other ingredients, which can increase appetite when taken orally ; Hawthorn has a regulatory effect on gastrointestinal motility, an inhibitory effect on gastrointestinal smooth muscle in a spastic state, and an excitatory effect on relaxed smooth muscle. ?[2]?

2. Lowering blood lipids and anti-atherosclerosis

Hawthorn flavonoids can significantly reduce serum total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (I.DI.-C) and apolipoprotein in experimental hyperlipidemia animals The concentration of B (ApoB) significantly increases the concentration of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL_C) and apolipoprotein A (ApoA), but has little effect on triglycerides (TG). Hawthorn's blood-lipid-lowering effect is by inhibiting the synthesis of cholesterol in the liver and promoting the uptake of plasma cholesterol by the liver. Hawthorn flavonoids can also reduce the risk of atherosclerosis (AS) and prevent the occurrence and development of AS.

3. Effect on the cardiovascular system

Anti-myocardial ischemia Hawthorn has a protective effect on acute experimental myocardial ischemia. Hawthorn flavonoids and hydrolysates increase nutritional blood flow in ischemic myocardium, among which hawthorn hydrolysates have the strongest effect. Hawthorn can not only increase coronary blood flow, but also reduce myocardial oxygen consumption and improve oxygen utilization.

Hawthorn flavonoids can improve the ischemic electrocardiogram of animals. Hawthorn flavonoids can reduce the scope of experimental myocardial infarction in rabbits. Heart-Strengthening Hawthorn has the effect of enhancing myocardial contractility and increasing cardiac output. Hawthorn extract can enhance myocardial contractility on toad hearts in vivo and in vitro, and the effect lasts for a long time. The current clear active ingredients are 3’, 4’, 5, 7-tetrahydroxyflavone-7-glucoside and rutin.

Hawthorn flavonoids and triterpene acid have a certain antihypertensive effect when administered intravenously, intraperitoneally and duodenally. Their mechanism of action is mainly related to the expansion of peripheral blood vessels.

Antioxidant hawthorn and hawthorn flavonoids have antioxidant effects, which can significantly reduce the content of malondialdehyde (MDA) in serum and liver, enhance the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) in red blood cells and liver, and at the same time enhance Plasma glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity.

4. Antibacterial

Hawthorn has a strong antibacterial effect on Shigella, Proteus, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, etc.

Clinical applications are commonly used in indigestion, coronary heart disease, angina pectoris, hyperlipidemia, etc.

Notes:

Hawthorn tastes sour and will become more sour after heating. You should brush your teeth immediately after eating, otherwise it will be detrimental to dental health. People who are afraid of tooth acidity can eat hawthorn products.

Pregnant women should avoid eating hawthorn to avoid miscarriage, and those with weak spleen and stomach. People with low blood sugar and children should not eat hawthorn.

Hawthorn cannot be eaten on an empty stomach. Hawthorn contains a large amount of organic acids, fruit acids, maslinic acid, citric acid, etc. Eating it on an empty stomach will cause gastric acid to surge, causing adverse irritation to the gastric mucosa, making the stomach full and pantothenic. If eaten on an empty stomach, Eating it too often can increase hunger and worsen existing stomach pain.

In addition, the market is flooded with a large amount of dyed hawthorn, which requires attention. It is recommended to choose a regular hawthorn tea brand to avoid quality problems. The tannic acid contained in raw hawthorn combines with gastric acid to easily form gastroliths, which is difficult to digest. If the gastrolith cannot be digested for a long time, it will cause gastric ulcer, gastric bleeding and even gastric perforation.

Therefore, you should eat as little raw hawthorn as possible, especially people with weak gastrointestinal function should be more cautious. Doctors suggest that it is best to cook hawthorn before eating it.

Reference: Baidu Encyclopedia-Hawthorn