HAWTHORN BERRY: Serious medicine for cardiac and circulatory ailments. The problem though is "BERRY". According to most but not all informed sources, modern medicinal extracts primarily use the leaves and flowers. Traditional preparations use the fruit. The Berry is the fruit.
However, if you have the misfortune of having "congestive heart failure" or "angina" the specifics of the Hawthorn can hardly be considered a trivial matter.
Next, standardization! Standardization for what? This "NOW" product is not standardized but I do take it with a standardized product, "standardized to 2% vitexin and 10% OPC" from "leaves and flowers".
Even where it is grown affects whether it is more useful for cardiac problems or arthritis and other chronic ailments. This is serious stuff and these are very easily confused issues, too easily confused for someone with a potentially fatal chronic heart ailment to be fiddling around with at home without proper medical supervision.
If you do hit the right combination of Hawthorn in an effective dose it may effect the way your prescription heart medication works in a somewhat unpredictable manner. If you take Digitalis the interaction could be fatal. For other drugs commonly taken such as "ACE Inhibitors", "Calcium Channel Blockers" and "Beta Blockers" the result is dicey but usually results in a potentiation of the drugs effects which in essence means your blood pressure drops without warning. Also, Hawthorn extracts are most effective when used in combination with varying dosages of Ginkgo, Co-Enzyme Q10, L-Carnitine, Kudzu, Grapeseed Extract, Coleus Forskohlii and Arginine to name just a few, depending on the individual.
So what I am saying is simply that Hawthorn is a very difficult drug to use on yourself safely without constant monitoring of BP [3-6x daily] and other vital signs. The research is just not that complete and the stuff can really be potent, especially when combined with other herbals and prescription meds. Ironically, this is why this "NOW" "Hawthorn Berry" product might be a relatively safe way to try Hawthorn without the extreme risk that might come from a more potent standardized product from the leaves and flowers. Generally, I take 1 capsule of this product each time I take a BP med and I have reduced the amount of prescription blood pressure meds probably as a result. However, the exact effect is day to day and depends on a lot of other factors and herbals. This is why you must be medically monitored several times a day at least if you are trying this out for treatment of a severe heart ailment.
FYI, there is very little other purpose for taking Hawthorn as other herbals like Bilberry, Gotu Kola and Grapeseed Extract are safer and more effective for other applications than Hawthorn.
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[3 of 5 Stars!]
