Herbs in the hawthorn family have been used to promote cardiovascular health.¹ Clinical studies have found that standardized extracts of these herbs show promise as supplementary agents for ventricular health.^2-5 Other trials consistently demonstrate hawthorn’s ability to improve exercise tolerance.^6,7 Its effectiveness has been demonstrated repeatedly in double-blind studies.^2,4,8 Hawthorn extract shows some beneficial effects in animal and human studies, including heart health, ACE inhibition, and mild reduction in systemic vascular resistance.

References
1. Fong HH, Bauman JL. Hawthorn. J Cardiovasc Nurs 2002 Jul;16(4):1-8.
2. Schmidt U, et al. Efficacy of the hawthorn (Crataegus) preparation LI 132 in 78 patients with chronic congestive heart failure defined as NYHA functional class II. Phytomedicine 1994 1:17-24.
3. Weikl A, Assmus KD, Neukum-Schmidt A, et al. Crataegus Special Extract WS 1442. Assessment of objective effectiveness in patients with heart failure (NYHA II). Fortschr Med 1996 Aug 30;114(24):291-6.
4. Leuchtgens H. Crataegus Special Extract WS 1442 in NYHA II heart failure. A placebo controlled randomized double-blind study. Fortschr Med 1993 111(20- 21):352-4.
5. Tauchert M, Gildor A, Lipinski J. High- dose Crataegus extract WS 1442 in the treatment of NYHA stage II heart failure. Herz 1999 24(6):465-74.
6. Busse W. Standardized Crataegus extract clinical monograph. Q Rev Nat Med 1996 189-97.
7. Weihmayr T, Ernst E. Therapeutic effectiveness of Crataegus. Fortschr Med 1996 114(1-2):27-9.
8. O’Conolly VM, et al. Treatment of cardiac performance (NYHA stages I to II) in advanced age with standardized cratae gus extract. Fortschr Med 1986 104:805-8.