Crataegi Fructus
Aliases：Qi、Ji Mei、Qi Zi、Shu Cha、Yang Ju、Chi Zhao Shi、Tang Ju Zi、Chi Zao Zi、Shan Li Hong Guo、Suan Zao、Bi Ti
Shanzha (Crataegi Fructus) is a commonly used Chinese medicinal herb that promotes digestion. It is the dried ripe fruit of Crataegus pinnatifida Bge. var. major N.E. Br. or Crataegus pinnatifida Bge. (family Rosaceae).
Efficacy & Actions
It has the actions of promoting digestion and fortifying the Stomach, moving Qi and dispersing stasis, and removing turbidity to lower blood lipids.
Indications
It is indicated for meat stagnation and indigestion, gastric and abdominal distension and fullness, diarrhea, dysentery and abdominal pain, blood stasis with amenorrhea, postpartum stasis obstruction, stabbing pain in the heart and abdomen, chest impediment and heart pain (angina pectoris), hernia pain, and hyperlipidemia (high blood lipids).
Modern Pharmacology
This product has lipid-lowering, anti-myocardial ischemic, immunomodulatory, and antibacterial effects, among others.
Ingredients
Shanzha (Crataegi Fructus) primarily contains organic acids, flavonoids, triterpenoids, and other active components. Organic acids: Citric acid, chlorogenic acid, monomethyl citrate, dimethyl citrate, trimethyl citrate, etc. Flavonoids: Quercetin, hyperoside, vitexin, etc. Triterpenoids: Ursolic acid, betulin, etc. Other constituents: Also contain carotene, vitamin C, vitamin B1, and others.
Usage & Dosage
Decoction: 9–12 g.
Contraindications
I. Herb‑herb incompatibilities (traditional) Traditionally, hawthorn should not come into contact with iron or be used with iron implements. During the use of ginseng (Renshen), traditional practice advises avoiding hawthorn. II. Herb‑drug interactions Avoid concomitant use with sulfonamides. The organic acids in hawthorn may acidify urine, causing sulfonamide metabolites to crystallize in the renal tubules, potentially damaging the urinary tract and leading to hematuria or crystalluria. Avoid concomitant use with aminoglycoside antibiotics. Avoid concomitant use with alkaline drugs such as aluminum hydroxide or aminophylline, as acid‑base neutralization may reduce efficacy. Hawthorn increases gastric acidity, which may hydrolyze the single bond of erythromycin and render it inactive; therefore, it should not be used together with erythromycin. When taken with potassium iodide, free iodine may be released, which can irritate the gastric mucosa. Concomitant use is not recommended. III. Dietary restrictions (traditional experience) Traditionally, hawthorn should not be eaten together with fish, shrimp, or seaweed, as it may cause discomfort or toxicity. Avoid eating hawthorn with pork liver, beef liver, lamb liver, milk, or egg yolks. Traditional belief holds that this may reduce nutritional absorption or therapeutic effects. Avoid eating hawthorn with scallions (spring onions) or garlic, as this is traditionally believed to cause insomnia. Avoid eating hawthorn with cucumber, pumpkin, carrot, or summer squash.
Selected Formulas
1. Enhancing digestion and resolving food stagnation: Hawthorn is often combined with Raphani Semen (Laifuzi) and Massa Medicata Fermentata (Shenqu) to enhance the effect of promoting digestion and resolving food stagnation. When used together with qi‑moving herbs such as Aucklandiae Radix (Muxiang) and Citri Reticulatae Viride Pericarpium (Qingpi), it moves qi and relieves stagnation, and is used for the treatment of epigastric and abdominal distension and pain due to food stagnation – as in Yunqi San (Standards of Pattern Identification and Treatment). 2. Treating hernia pain: Hawthorn is often combined with Citri Reticulatae Semen (Jujuhe) and Litchi Semen (Lizhihe). 3. Treating pain due to blood stasis: For chest and hypochondriac pain caused by blood stasis, it is often combined with blood‑activating and stasis‑removing herbs such as Chuanxiong Rhizoma (Chuanxiong), Persicae Semen (Taoren), and Carthami Flos (Honghua). For postpartum stasis pain, persistent lochia, dysmenorrhea, or amenorrhea, Zhu Danxi used hawthorn alone with brown sugar in water decoction. It may also be combined with Angelicae Sinensis Radix (Danggui), Cyperi Rhizoma (Xiangfu), and Carthami Flos (Honghua) – as in Tongyu Jian (The Complete Works of Zhang Jingyue).
Daily Consumption
Hawthorn Tea: 5-10g dried, steep 10 min. Promotes digestion. Avoid on empty stomach, hyperacidity. Hawthorn Congee: 10-15g dried, decoct with 50g rice. Strengthens stomach. Avoid during pregnancy. Stewed Meat: 10-15g with fatty pork/ribs. Aids meat digestion. Red Date Soup: 10g hawthorn, 5 red dates, brown sugar. Regulates menstruation, relieves dysmenorrhea. Hawthorn Paste/Jam: Cook puree with sugar. Promotes appetite. Reduce sugar for diabetics. Hawthorn Wine: 100g hawthorn, 50g rock sugar, 500ml liquor; infuse 1 month. 10-15ml/day. Activates blood. Avoid in pregnancy, alcohol allergy. Contraindications: Hyperacidity, peptic ulcer, pregnancy, spleen-stomach deficiency.
Medicinal Parts
ripe fruit
Selection & Storage
Store in a dry, airtight container in a well-ventilated, dry place. For hawthorn charcoal, pay attention to heat dissipation to prevent re-ignition.